258 Forgotten Fevfhers. LsflU 



Albatross, although less good, are not for that reason to be 

 disdained. The Oyster-catcher, the ' Goueland,' the Booby, and 

 the Gulls are scarcely worth catching. I do not doubt that in the 

 mating and egging seasons other species than those of which I 

 mention frequent these shores, where they appear to enjoy perfect 

 security. The land- birds that we have met with in the islands of 

 the channel {i.e., D'Entrecasteaux Channel) and upon the mamland 

 are not very numerous, and they were so shy and difficult to 

 approach that I was led to believe that they are often chased by 

 the aborigines. The commonest species are the Parrots, blue- 

 headed and yellow-breasted, and another kind with red wings and 

 green plumage ; the latter is much smaller than the former, which 

 is as large as a dove, and very beautiful. The Eagle, the Hawk, 

 the Crow, the Magpie, the Cuckoo (' le Coucou'), 'la Pigrieche,' 

 'la Grieve,' the Blackbird (' le Merle'), the Partridge ('la 

 Perdrix '), and the Quail are only rarely met with, and it was only 

 with difficulty that we were able to obtain specimens of these 

 species. We hav^e also met with several kinds of small birds which 

 were unknown to me, of which the plumage is nicely shaded 

 (' bien nuance'), and the song agreeable. All those which we 

 have procured are included in the collection of Citizen Mauge (one 

 of the scientific staff), and I hope that they will augment the 

 number already collected in the National Museum. The beautiful 

 Golden-winged Pigeon, of which Anderson speaks, was so rare here 

 that we obtained only one specimen." 



It must be remembered that Baudin was not a trained zoologist. 

 Several of his words are puzzling. What Tasmanian bird did he 

 call the Cuckoo, for instance, and what the Blackbird ? What are 

 the "Pigrieche," the "Grieve," and the "Goueland gris ? " It 

 should be noted that the French ships were in Tasmanian waters 

 during January and February, 1802. 



Bird Day. 



The first celebration of Bird Day has been successfully carried out 

 in New South Wales. The second celebration in South Australia 

 and the third in Victoria have assisted in firmly establishing the 

 present keen interest that is being displayed by Australians in the 

 rich and varied avifauna of this great island-continent. 



In New South Wales the Gould League of Bird Lovers has been 

 established, and an appropriate certificate has been issued. (See 

 Plate XXVII. — one -third original size.) 



In South Australia new bird clubs are constantly being added to 

 the list. Creditable work is being done in connection with the 

 education of pupils and teachers by the publication of special Bird 

 Day articles. A special Bird Day number of The School Paper 

 was also issued. Mr. A. G. Edquist keeps the matter constantly 

 before the children by his attractively-written columns in The 

 Children's Hour. 



