ASHBY—Gifpsland Bird Note>. 77 



Staganopleura guttata (Spotted-sided Finch).— Odd birds 

 have been seen at the Curlwa irrigation settlement. 



Taeniopygia castanotis (Chestnut-eared Finch). — Fairly 

 (Common on the irrigation settlements. 



Ghlamydera maculata guttata (Yellow-spotted Bower 

 Bird). — Uncommon; a few fbirds were seen at Kulkyne Station, 

 on the Murray. From reports it appears that this bird is now 

 much rarer than it was a few years ago. 



Gorvus coronoides (Raven). — Common throughout the 

 district. 



Gorvus bennetti (Small-billed Crow). — An inland bird. 

 It seems to prefer open country, away from the rivers. 



Strepera sp. — A bird of this genus is occasionally met with 

 in the mallee country. They are exceedingly shy, and so far 

 no specimen has been obtained for identification. 



8truthidea cinerea (Grey Jumper). — A small family of 

 these birds was located at a tank on the road from Wentworth 

 to Cuthro, but on the tank drying up they left. 



Gorcorax melanorhamphus (White-winged Chough). — A 

 common bird, both on the box flats and in the mallee. They are 

 sometimes met with long distances from known water. 



Gippsland Bird Notes. 



—By Edwin Ashby, F.L.S., M.B.O.U.— 



It was my privilege to spend a few days of the first week 

 in April at Yinnar, Gippsland. Yinnar is just a hundred miles 

 from Melbourne. 



My last visit to that part of Australia was in the winter of 

 1886, or 34 years fego. Where previously was virgin forest, 

 untouched by the presence of man, is now miles and miles of 

 rung timber. The place I camped at in 1886 was nine miles 

 beyond the next station (Boolara), in the "big timber country." 

 Two birds I met with there appear absent at Yinnar; they are 

 the Vittorian Large-billed Scrub- Wren {Sericornis magnirostris 

 howeiMat.), which was there creeping about like a mouse, 

 amongst the ferns of the creek bottom, and the Victorian Pink- 

 breasted Robin {Erythrodryas rodinogaster incxpectn Mat.), 

 which was then fairly numerous in a small piece of rung timber. 

 only an acre or so in extent. The cock birds seemed to know 

 their protective colouration, and would settle with their backs 



