172 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



NOTES. 



Narrow-billed Bronze Cuckoo. — Mr. J. C. Goudie, Birchip, 

 writes as follows : — " With regard to the question, Does the 

 young of the Narrow-Billed Cuckoo (Chalcites basalis) eject its 

 foster-brethren from the nest ? touched upon by Mr. A. J. 

 Campbell in his article in the Naturalist for March, the following, 

 taken from my note-book, may be of interest to your readers : — 

 * On the 5th of November, 1897, a nest of the White-fronted 

 Ephthianura, E. albifrons, was noticed, containing a clutch of 

 three eggs of the rightful owner and an egg of the Narrow- 

 billed Bronze Cuckoo. Between the 5th and 8th one of the 

 Ephthianura's and the Cuckoo's egg were hatched, and the 

 difference in size was at once noticeable, the usurper being half 

 as large again as its nest-mate. By the 8th inst. the two re- 

 maining eggs had been thrown out, and the same day I was 

 fortunate enough to witness a determined attempt on the part of 

 the young cuckoo to eject its smaller companion. First of all it 

 assumed an upright sitting posture, then wriggled and shuffled 

 about until it managed to get the young Ephthianura fairly on to 

 its (the Cuckoo's) back ; it then rose on tip-toe, with its back to 

 the side of the nest, and, spreading its wings and using them as 

 arms to keep its load in position, it endeavoured, by a series of 

 violent upward jerks, to force the latter out of the nest. On this 

 occasion it was not quite equal to the task, and, after a pro- 

 tracted struggle, gave it up. However, by the evening of the 

 next day it had accomplished its purpose, and rested in undis- 

 puted possession. A more remarkable exhibition of instinct I 

 have never seen — more wonderful from the fact that the bird 

 was practically just out of the egg, blind, and seemingly helpless.' 

 While on the subject of this Cuckoo, I may mention an 

 incident which came under my notice last spring. A female of 

 Malurus melanotus was observed building her nest in a tangle of 

 high grass and twigs, and while the operation was in full swing — 

 she had just begun the business of lining — a Narrow-billed 

 Bronze Cuckoo's egg was deposited in the nest. I watched this 

 circumstance with interest, expecting, as is usual in such cases, 

 that the egg would be covered over, and thus treated with con- 

 tempt. But, no! Resenting this unwarrantable intrusion, the little 

 builder removed the entire nest, bit by bit, and rebuilt it about a 

 stone-throw from the old situation, leaving the Cuckoo's egg 

 lying on the ground." 



Field Naturalists' Club Library. — The following period- 

 icals are now regularly placed in the library for the use of 

 members : — " Natural Science," " Annals and Magazine of 

 Natural History," "Geological Magazine," "Zoologist," "Science 

 Gossip," "Entomologist's Monthly Magazine," and " Journal of 

 Royal Microscopical Society." 



