10 Order Galliformea, Faiinhi F/iasianidae, ','eni'S Cutiintix. 



when there is sufficient cover for them; when the food supply 

 of a district is exliausted they move away to better one. and 

 this is generally done at night. If protected this bird be- 

 comes A-ery confiding and will frequent the garden near the 

 house and rear it's young, killing much insect life amongst 

 the plants. 



Food. — Grass and other plant seeds, also much insect life, 

 they destroy an immense quantity of noxious weed seeds. 



Flight. — Rtnmg and swift, rise very quickly from the 

 ground, and making a loud whirring sound with the wings. 



Gall. — Shrill whistle of two notes which is very difficult 

 to locate. 



^W.s^.— Placed on the ground often in a depression amidst 

 thick grass or under a tussock, in standing crops or the like, 

 the nest is generally roughly formed of grass stems, rootlets, 

 and the dry blades of grass. 



^.W«- — Four to ten in number, vary much in colouration, 

 some being lightly marked, while others have thick dark 

 bloches, in other cases a deep dark zone is formed round the 

 larger end. 



The Birds of the Malice. 



By Edwin Ashby. A.L.S.. M.B.O.U., C.F.A.O.U.. &f. 



It seems well worth while to give some account of a brief 

 visit to a practically unexplored, as far as ornithologists and 

 other scientists are concerned, belt of Mallee within easy 

 reach by motor fi-om the City of Adelaide. My companions 

 were two of our most enthusiastic members, Messrs. 

 F. A. Parsons and J. N. McGilp, and to them 

 is due the credit of finding all the eggs obtained 

 on the trij). We started from Blackwood a few 

 minutes past (> a.m., September 1st, 1010. and 

 travelled via Mount Barker and Woodchester. The 

 visit to- the latter townshij) took us a few 

 miles out of our way, but we noted a grass parrot Neonanode>i. 

 close to Woodchester, as it made oft" to a considerable distance 

 M'e niaide no attempt to follow it up. We entered the beR of 



