iooJ 1 I Littler, From a Tasmanian Notebook. 217 



the females took it in turns to sit on the eggs, or whether the interloping 

 bird left all the work to the rightful owner of the nest. The nest was lined 

 very snugly with rabbit's fur and a few feathers. The nearest farmyard 

 is some two miles off. 



2nd December. — Launceston. — This afternoon while walking along the 

 upper part of High-street, a White Goshawk (Astur novce-hollandice) was 

 seen approaching in an easterly direction. It flew overhead at no 

 great elevation, allowing its form to be plainly seen. It disappeared among 

 the trees on the Cataract Hill. At no other time have I ever seen this 

 species within the town boundaries. A strong southerly wind was blowing 

 at the time, which seemed to hamper the bird's flight considerably. 



1 8th December. — While some six miles along the Patersonia road I came 

 across a pair of Yellow-throated Honey-eaters {Ptilotis flavigularis) very 

 busily engaged in gathering wool to line their nest. I was unable to ascer- 

 tain its exact locality, owing to the dense scrub. The birds took but little 

 notice of my presence. 



Close by I found a young fully fledged Dusky Robin (Petrosca vittatd) 

 perched on a twig. Just to see what would happen, I captured it and held 

 it in my hand. Naturally, it vigorously protested with all its lung power ; 

 in the space of a second some half-dozen or more adult birds were flying, 

 screaming, round me. It was most amusing to watch the antics of some 

 of them ; they seemed almost beside themselves with consternation and 

 indignation. Some flapped along the ground, feigning broken wings ; 

 others tumbled out of bushes and then flew up again, and repeated it 

 de novo ; others contented themselves screaming. I put the young bird 

 down — in a few minutes not a bird was to be seen, and quiet once more 

 reigned. 



The Christmas holidays were spent at Scottsdale and Derby, towards the 

 N.E. coast. The weather was not altogether favourable for outdoor work, 

 so that my notes for the trip are but sparse. I cull the following : — 



Lesser White-backed Magpie (Gymnorhina hyperleucd). — None seen 

 round Scottsdale or Derby ; a few pairs observed round " The Camp," 

 some nine miles on the road to Derby. 



BROWN SCRUB-WREN {Sericornis humilis). — Several pairs seen in the 

 blackberry hedges round Scottsdale. They were very shy. 



Long-tailed Wren (Malurus gouldi). — Very plentiful ; mostly females, 

 or sombre-plumaged birds, as perhaps many of them were young not yet 

 in adult plumage. 



TREE-MARTIN (Petrochelidon nigricans). — A few seen along the road. 



SWALLOW (Hirundo neoxena). — Plentiful both at Scottsdale and Derby. 



Notes on a Trip to the Wongan Hills, Western 

 Australia, with a Description of a New Ptilotis. 



By Alex. Wm. Milligan 



{Hon. Ornithologist, Perth Museum, W.A.) 



Part I . 



On the 14th September, 1842, or about 61 years ago, Gilbert, 



the intrepid field naturalist and the coadjutor of Gould, wrote 



from the Wongan Hills describing the nest-mound and eggs of 



