126 stray Feathers. [,n!"oct. 



great iuss over their discovery. That was, at the least, two months 

 ago, and I think that ahnost every day, and sometimes three or 

 four times a day, those half-dozen cheeky little Honey-eaters go 

 right down in the heap of twigs and sit close beside and scold the 

 unresponsive heap of feathers. Their hatred seems to be con- 

 fined to thernselves, for no other birds seem to take any interest 

 in their actions. — Ernest D. Barnard. Kurrajong, Gladstone 



(Q.), 2g/7/ii. 



* * * 



Two Nests of Alcyone pusilla. — Dr. Wm. M'Gillivray, Broken 

 Hill, sends the following field-notes received from his collector 

 (Mr. J. M'Lennan) at Cape York : — 



" 17/2/11. — Went out to big swamp behind Charo mangroves. 

 Flushed a Little Kingfisher {Alcyone pusilla) from its nest in a mass 

 of earth adhering to the roots of a fallen tea-tree in the middle of 

 the swamp. The nest contained five eggs, slightly incubated. 

 Tunnel 6 inches long and a little over an inch in diameter. Egg- 

 chamber circular, about 4^ inches in diameter. Dimensions of 

 eggs in mm. : — 17 x 15, 17 x 14, 17 x 14, 17 x 14^, 17 x 14. 



" 30/2/11. — Went down to mangroves. Mud Bay, near Somerset 

 Saw a couple of Alcyone pusilla in mangroves along the creek. 

 Walking through the mangroves, close to the edge of the swamp 

 I flushed one of these birds from its nest in an old white mangrove 

 stump ; it contained five fresh eggs. Nest, a hole drilled in rotten 

 mould ; tunnel 6 inches long, i^ inches in diameter. Egg-chamber 

 5 inches across, 4 inches deep. The bird returned whilst I was 

 taking the eggs, and sat a few feet away. The nest was 5 feet 

 from the ground. Dimensions of eggs in mm. : — 18 x 15, 18 x 15, 

 18 X 15, 18 x 15, r8 x 15. 



" Both clutches are close-grained, smooth, slightly lustrous, 

 though a good deal nest-stained. The eggs are rounded in shape." 



Jottings from the Mersey, Tasmania. — Large numbers of 

 the handsome New Holland (White-bearded) Honey-eaters 

 (Meliornis novce-hollandice) have been in this district all the 

 winter. They frequent chiefly the Cape wattles and tree lucernes, 

 both introduced plants, which flower profusely during the cold 

 months, and furnish sustenance to the M eliphagidcE . I would 

 recommend those who have fair-sized gardens to plant these 

 trees round the fences, when they wfll be provided with enter- 

 tainment by birds during the " dead " season. The lively move- 

 ments of the " White-beards " as they dash from tree to tree, 

 or hang back downwards under a spike of blossom while engaged 

 in extracting nectar, and their sharp notes, sounding like " Whiss ! 

 whiss I " are everyday sights and sounds here. A few " Crescents " 

 {Meliornis aiistralasiana) also make their aj^pearance, but not in 

 such numbers as their congeners. They seem to remain in pairs, 

 and do not flock like M . nova-hoUandict on the approach of the 

 cold season. During the cold snap at the end of April I witnessed 



