Vol. III. 

 1904 



J Australasian Ornithologists' Union. 1 5 I 



for such species. The record of the arrivals and departures of 

 the Australian and Oriental Dottrels and the Australian and 

 Oriental Pratincoles is given, which is of much interest, and it 

 is to be noted that the former bird, Pcltohyas australis, was not 

 found breeding, arriving in December and leaving in January, 

 testifying thus to its usual mysterious movements. The Channel- 

 bill, Coucal, and Koel are also summer visitants to the districts 

 of the Richmond and Campaspe Rivers, as likewise the Roller 

 and Bee-eater, which arrive, no doubt, from the Malay Islands 

 and then range southwards through the continent. 



Mr. Cochrane's paper on birds from North Queensland deals 

 also with migration, and contains valuable notes, one of which 

 refers to the Nutmeg-Pigeon, which species is also spoken of by 

 Mr. Cornwall in an adjoining paper on a visit to Green Island. 

 It is to be hoped that steps will be taken in Queensland to afford 

 additional protection to this bird, as the outcome of the corre- 

 spondence published by the editors in Part 1 . The short and 

 abundant migration of this species from New Guinea, down 

 the coast to a place almost as hot as its winter abode, 

 is a singular and noteworthy feature in its economy, and it is 

 the more peculiar when we have regard to the fact that New 

 Guinea is essentially the land of Pigeons, and free from the great 

 enemy to their breeding economy — monkeys. 



In our own State, Mr. F. M. Littler, of Launceston, has been 

 doing good work in noting the distribution of species in the 

 Launceston district, and has written two articles on our 

 " peculiar " birds, accompanied by some redescriptions of well- 

 known plumages, with interesting notes on the habits of the 

 species, and further on their nidification, concerning which 

 information is always welcome. In reference to the internal 

 migrations of our Graucalus, there is still more to be learnt ere 

 we can satisfactorily follow its movements. It is some years 

 since their winter locale on the east coast was recorded by 

 myself, and now Mr. Littler finds them in some seasons about 

 Launceston during the winter. It is certain that they leave 

 the high-lying districts in winter and affect the littoral areas of 

 the island, in one of which — the lower-lying portions of the 

 county of Arthur — they may some day, when the district is 

 opened up, be found in greater numbers. They will also be 

 traced, in all probability, to the low-lying areas in the north of 

 Dorset. The question is, however, do they not carry out also a 

 partial migration to the Strait islands ? They arrive on the 

 Break-o'-Day Plains, which are a mountain upland, about the 

 last week in September or first week in October, but hardly any 

 were seen this year until the end of the latter month. Mr. Littler's 

 observations go to prove that our male Malurus is very irregular 

 in acquiring his nuptial dress. There is no doubt that this 

 species frequently does not moult till July, and on the uplands 

 does hot sometimes get its blue dress until the end of September. 



A pleasing feature in the organization of our Union is the 



