gS M'ClymONT, Tasmanian Birds at Home. fisf Oct- 



seen before spring commences. In 1890 I observed one on the 

 17th of August. 



Let us resume our ramble. To the level tract a sandy ridge 

 succeeds, covered with stringybark and native cherry trees 

 {Exocarpus cupressiformis), and with a thick undergrowth of 

 bracken ferns. Here I have surprised in mid-afternoon the 

 little Spotted Owl {^Ninox jnaculata) ensconced in the foliage 

 of a stringybark sapling. The tarsi of this Owl are closely 

 covered with pale rufous feathers to the base of the toes ; the 

 claws are well curved and pointed ; the iris a waxy yellow, the 

 beak lead-coloured, with the basal lighter in hue than the distal 

 portion. Total length, 12^ inches ; wing, 8 inches ; tail, 55^ 

 inches; tarsus, lyi inches. Mice are said to constitute its 

 principal food, and to obtain these it does not. require to leave 

 its haunts in the bush, for there are bush mice in abundance, 

 which dwell in rocky crannies or beneath tussocks of rank grass, 

 from which they sally forth in quest of food in the daytime, as 

 well as by night — quaint little creatures, cautious rather than 

 timorous in the presence of man. The brow of the ridge is 

 frequented by large companies of Hill Crow-Shrikes {Strepera 

 argiita). There are at times as many as 40 birds together ; 

 they come to feed on the berries of the Exocarpus. Bush fires 

 necessarily destroy much of the food of fruit-eating birds, and 

 this may be one reason for their seeking food in cultivated areas. 

 The Hill Crow-Shrike filches from the apple orchard, and leaves 

 the trace of his presence in varying degrees of mischief. Some- 

 times only a puncture is made on the rind of the apple ; 

 generally a large piece of the fruit is scooped out ; rarely is the 

 whole apple eaten excepting the core. When these Crow-Shrikes 

 are flying overhead the white basal portions of the inner webs of 

 the primaries are very conspicuous, and may well serve as marks 

 whereby they can be recognized by others on the ground. 

 Beyond the ridge for about a mile the country is undulating, 

 and slopes gently towards Norfolk Bay. The soil is of a turfy 

 nature. Epacris abounds, and there are dwarfish orchids of 

 pale hues and also sundews. In some of the hollows tall sedges 

 grow, concealing marshy ground. Birds are not plentiful here- 

 abouts, because of the paucity of trees and shrubs which harbour 

 insects. In 1889 I saw the Ground Parrakeet {Pesoporiis 

 formosus) in this locality, but have not heard of its being there 

 since that time. The Yellow-tail {Acanthiza chrysorrhoa) is a 

 gregarious Tit, which prefers grassy hillsides, with a sunny 

 exposure, near the shelter of trees or shrubs. In such situations 

 flocks of about twenty systematically work patches of ground, 

 tripping lightly over the sod in quest of seeds or insects. 

 They find these conditions at Impression Bay. " Redbills " 

 {Hcsj/iatopHS unicolor) and Pied Oyster-catchers {H. longirostris) 

 visit this place, but rarely appear further south in Norfolk 

 Bay. 



