•] Ross, Notes on the Rufous Bristle-Bird. 



121 



spot where 1 had tirst left the track on the first day : and here, 

 after a wait of about lo minutes, I was rewarded by seeing and 

 hearing a pair of birds within a few feet of me. As soon as 1 saw 

 the birds 1 had no doulH about their identity, and, after ol^serving 

 them for a \v\\\\r and hstening to their calls — calls which once 

 heard should not be readily forgotten — I started to look for tlic 

 nest, and in a fi-w minutes I had found one, apparently built the 

 previous year. This was a series of fortunate circumstances, for, 

 early in the day, 1 had obtained a good view of a pair of birds, 

 had heard their calls repeated close to me several times, so that 

 1 could not mistake the princijml ones, and had been able to insj^ect 

 a nest and thus get an idea of how and where other nests would 

 be built. I felt confident now of gaining sufficient information 

 to enable me to find the birds easily should I again visit any 

 locality frequented by them, for, from my experience of the first 

 day, I knew where to find at least two other pairs of birds. 

 During the day I had these two pairs and two other pairs under 

 observation, and found seven other nests. All the nests were 

 empty save one, which contained two young birds. The nestlings 

 remained under supervision only for a few seconds, then fluttered 

 from the nest to the ground, and disappeared in the scrub like 

 rats. I tried hard to find them again, without success, but was 

 more fortunate with the parents, for, by making a noise like a 

 young or wounded bird, I brought them repeatedly quite close to 

 me, and was much interested in watching the rapidity of their 

 movements as they worked round me in a circle with a radius of 

 about 12 feet. It was only occasionally, and then not for many 

 seconds, that I could get a really good look at them, for they were 

 almost constantly on the move, and took all the advantages the 

 scrub offered for cover. Once I thought I saw a bird erect the 

 feathers on its head like a crest, but was afraid to record it as a 

 fact. That the species has this habit has, however, since been 

 recorded in The Emu by a member of the R.A.O.U. who resides 

 in the Cape Otway Ranges and who is a keen observer, so that 

 what little doubt I had on the subject has been removed. Next 

 day I covered country in the same neighbourhood, heard birds 

 again frequently, saw them occasionally, and found four more 

 nests, all empty. Of the twelve nests found during that trip I 

 failed to note the situations of three, but the following particulars 

 were jotted down regarding the others ; — Two in sword-grass, two 

 in native hops {(•oodenia ovata), one on tussock of grass, two in 

 tea-tree, and two practically in stunted, gnarled gum-trees. In 

 these cases, although there was scrub growing up through the 

 gum-trees, the ])rincipa] support was the dwarf gum, and both 

 nests were so close to the sea that in rough weather they would 

 be within reach of the wind-blown spray from the waves. Most 

 of these nests had their openings uphill, but at least four, and, 

 I think, four only, had their openings downhill. One of the nests 

 built in native hops contained the yovmg birds mentioned, and 

 the ojxMiing faced downhill. (For illustration of nest see Plate XI.) 



