Description of a Neir Sii.bsjiecies of Climacteric. 



grove, but where such is not avaihible any low bush will suit 

 their purpose, such as tea tree or samphire, often several nests 

 are placed in the same shrub. The lining is seaweed or grass, 

 but this soon becomes caked with excrement, as does the whole 

 nest. The eggs are two or three in number, rarely four. They 

 are quite white when fresh laid, but very quickly become nest 

 stained. The outer coating is soft and chalky, and is easily 

 scraped off, if this be done the true colour of the egg is found 

 to be light blue or greenish blue. Eggs laid late in the season, 

 probably second or third clutches, are often deficient in the 

 outer coating, and show patches of the blue ground colour. 

 Average measurement of 17 eggs, 6.27 x 3.83 cm. 



Largest egg, 6.80 x 3.80 cm. 



Smallest Egg, 6.05 x 3.50 cm. 



They do not noraially lay more than one clutch in a sea 

 son, but if a first clutch be destroyed they will lay another. 



In South Australia the breeding season is the Autumn, 

 usually from March to Mav. 



Description of a New Subspecies of Climacteris. 



By J. W. Mellor, R.A.O.U. 



Climacteris erythrops parsonsi subsp., nov. Mellor. 



Southern White-browed Treecreeper. 



Type locality Pungonda. Hundred of Bookpurnong, 

 South Australia. 



As might reasonably be expected a climacteris inhabit- 

 inz the pine and mallee" country of the River Murray would 

 differ considerably from its ally of the arid districts of Cen- 

 tral Australia. When comparing the skins of a pair of the 

 white-browed treecreepers that I procured from Pungonda in 

 the Hundred of Bookpurnong, S.A., in October last, with 

 North's descri])tion of the White-browed Treecreeper procured 

 by the Horn Expedition to Central Australia, vide report of 

 Horn Expedition, Aves p. 96 I found the following differences : 



The Southern form is altogether more robust, and 

 the coloration differs considerably from the Central Aus- 

 tralian bird, being more greyish above; crown of head and 

 forehead being uniform dark grey; no wash of brown on the 

 grey upper tail coverts; subterminal band on tail black; no 

 buffy brown on sides of body and centre of abdomen; and 

 dull' white in place of buffy white on under tail coverts, 

 which are ''barred" with black spots. The birds were rare, 



