on some Tasmanian birds' nests.



235



verniciflua, Cunn.). It was composed of grasses and portions of dry

fern, and lined with feathers; placed at a height of 2£ ft. from the

ground, and so well concealed in the tangle that only the entrance

was visible when one stooped to peer into the. thicket. Had the

bird not flown as I made a thrust with my stick among the ferns,

her secret would probably have remained undiscovered. In the

afternoon of the same day I paid another visit, and was rewarded by

finding the female upon the nest, where she remained and gazed

quietly at me.


To quote a few instances of birds that select the ground for

their nurseries, or get so close thereto that they may be considered

as ground-builders, I will describe a ramble along the side of a white

gum-tree hill in Northern Tasmania. Here, under shelter of the fine,

straight, young trees, and amid the profusion of Lepidosperma

tussocks with which the long slope is covered, numbers of beautiful

Yellow-throated Honey-eaters ( Ptilotis flaviqularis ) were occupied

with domestic cares. The first nursery was easily seen, no attempt

having been made at concealment; it was situated only a foot from

the soil, in a small Lepidosperma tussock, and was cup-shaped, deep,

formed of strips of gum bark and grass, and lined with about equal

parts of cowhair and wool. The dimensions were : 5 in. across the

top over all, 2J in. across inside, and about the same inside depth.

Two eggs reposed on the warm liuing, one being white, the other of

the usual pinkish hue, with many red spots at the apex, sparsely

spotted over remainder of shell.


Another nest was placed in a larger tussock, and was fairly

well hidden under loose strips of fallen gum-tree bark. It was con¬

structed of grass, with some of the Lepidosperma blades passing

•diagonally through the sides and woven in ; spider cocoons were

also woven into the exterior, and the nest was situated close to a

large, strong web, having a vertical shaft in which the obese arachnid

lay hid. The cup-shaped nest was very deep, so much so that the

female Honey-eater was almost concealed as she sat, only her head

and pretty primrose throat showing at one side and her tail at the

other, the body being packed well down, giving the impressiou of

great depth and warmth. She sat without a movement while we

watched, and a few days before, when visited by Mr. H. C. Thompson



