72 MiLLlGAN, Field Observatio?is on IV. Atistralian Birds, [i^t oct. 



second visit, they, as might be expected from their being local in habit, 

 were very abundant. 



ACANTHIZA INORNATA (Plain-coloured Tit).— I secured several on my 

 first trip. The birds had bred, and had their young with them. 



ACANTHIZA APiCALis (Broad-tailed Tit). — These were abundant in the 

 " stinkwood " scrubs. It is rather a ludicrous sight to see one of these little 

 fellows suddenly mount to a point of vantage (usually a dry stinkwood in the 

 scrub), and, elevating his tail, utter a series of sharp notes with all his vocal 

 might. Judging by the actions of the birds I should say they were only 

 beginning to nest. 



ACANTHIZA CHRYSORRHOA (Yellow-rumped Tit). — These useful little 

 birds were often to be seen in companies about the homestead and in the 

 open lands. They had, I think, already brought out their first broods, for I 

 heard young ones in a nest at South Pert^h in the middle of winter. Subse- 

 quently, in January, I heard young ones in the same nest, and saw the 

 parent birds carrying food. 



PSOPHODES NIGROGULARIS (Black-throated Coachwhip-Bird). — The 

 capture of this bird proved to be one of the most interesting incidents of my 

 first trip. It is locally known as the " Rain-Bird," by reason of the fact that 

 immediately preceding rain it seeks the summits of the coast-hills and utters 

 a series of beautiful, clear, liquid, penetrating notes, which are difficult to 

 imitate. It is quite possible that its name is fully justified, for its food 

 consists in part of the land snails which are found on these hill summits, 

 which forms in dry spring weather are apparently lifeless, but when the 

 atmosphere is moist or after a shower of rain are full of vitality and may be 

 found creeping up the stems and branches of the dwarf scrub. Instinct or 

 experience would teach the bird to seek such places for this particular class of 

 food immediately precedent to rain, and, while seeking such, it would naturally 

 utter its notes. The notes of the bird are well known to both the "blacks" 

 and the old colonists, but both allege the bird has never been seen. That, 

 I think, is probably true, for with the aid of my trained dog and all the bush- 

 craft I could gather, it took me four days of persistent hard work to get a 

 glimpse of one. I have sought and secured the Pittas in Queensland, the 

 Lyre-birds in Victoria, as also Psophodcs crepitans in the latter State, but the 

 securing of specimens of such birds is simple as compared with getting" the 

 Black-throated Coachwhip-Bird. As might be expected, the bird is a ground 

 runner, and the difficulty in seeing it is due to such fact, and the additional 

 one that it never leaves the knee-high dwarf scrubs. These scrubs are so 

 thick and strong that in many places I could stand on their even upper 

 surfaces without sinking. The ruse I eventually determined to adopt in 

 securing the bird was, after having located its probable whereabouts (a most 

 difficult task), to fire the cylinder barrel of my gun into the particular place 

 and thus endeavour to cause it to take wing ; pursuing such plan, and 

 'having located the whereabouts of the bird and fired without flushing it, 

 before I had time to feel disappointment at the failure of my ruse the laird 

 ran across the corner of a small patch of burnt scrub, and snap-shooting 

 with my choke barrel, and aided with the best of luck, I stopped my prize. 

 The locating of the bird's whereabouts is a most difficult task, for he is a 

 perfect ventriloquist. Whilst in pursuit of him I have approached stealthily 

 to a place from where his notes appeared to come in the first place — I would 

 then have to await the prolonged repetition of his call. The first notes 

 would appear to come as if the bird were 300 yards away — degree by degree 

 they would come nearer until within a few yards. Suddenly they would 

 appear to the right as if the bird had changed its position— then to the left, 

 and next moment behind me, and usually by the time the call was finished I 

 located the bird (rightly or wrongly) where I first imagined it to be. On 

 my second visit a second specimen was secured after a long chase, but on 

 this occasion there were four persons in pursuit instead of one, and the bird 



