94 Wilson, Ornithological Trip to Nhill District. 



Vicl. Nat. 

 Vol. XXXV. 



he usually does in a tree some distance from the nest. Having 

 delivered one beakful, he always seemed to have some difficulty 

 in regurgitating the next lot, and would keep bobbing his head, 

 first down and then up, in his effort, the time taken in 

 regurgitating a beakful averaging, about ten seconds. These 

 birds are exceptionally tight sitters, and it is almost impossible 

 to flush them from the nesting hollow by the usual method of 

 hammering the tree with a tomahawk. They are very fond of 

 charcoal, and I have vivid recollections of pilgrimages of these 

 beautiful birds to a charcoal heap in the Gunbower district. 

 Mallee Parrots, Barnardius barnardi, Rosellas, Platycercus 

 cximius, and Yellow-vented Parrakeets, Psephotus xanthorrhoits, 

 also breed locally, and Mr. Oldfield informs me that the Many- 

 coloured Parrot also occasionally visits the district. I was 

 disappointed in not meeting with species of the genus Euphema, 

 but, from the description of a parrot supplied to me by a 

 resident, I feel convinced that a more diligent search would 

 have rewarded me. On one occasion I saw a flock of about 

 sixty Black Cockatoos, Calyptorhynchus funereus, feeding on 

 the seeds of eucalypts and Hakeas. The hollow trees were 

 also tenanted by Boobook Owls, Ninox boobook, and Owlet 

 Nightjars, JEgotheles novce-hollandicc , but neither of these birds 

 was at all plentiful. 



The White Gums and a species of mallee were out in full 

 flower, and thousands of Lorikeets had congregated to feast 

 upon the nectar, the Purple-crowned species, Glossopsitta 

 par phyrocephala, being by far the most numerous. A few 

 Musk Lorikeets, G. concinna, and Swift Parrots, Latham us 

 discolor, were also identified in the flocks. When first I saw 

 Purple-crowned Lorikeets entering a hollow I thought I had 

 located a nest, but further observation, together with an 

 examination of the hollow, showed me that they were only 

 using it as a roosting-place, and had evicted a pair of Red-tipped 

 Pardalotes, Pardalotus striatus, to further their convenience. 

 In the case of two hollows observed, the birds would be away 

 all day and return just before nightfall. Unlike other birds, 

 instead of pausing before •entering a hole, they dash straight 

 in, and one wonders how they avoid injuring themselves owing 

 to their impetuosity. 



Red-tipped Pardalotes were calling everywhere in the White 

 Gum timber, and every available knot-hole seemed to be 

 occupied by them. Some had only started building, whilst 

 occasional nests examined contained fully-fledged young. I 

 discovered three nesting hollows of the dainty little Tree-Martin, 

 Petrochelidon nigricans, one being occupied by four birds and 

 the other two by three birds each. One of the latter I was 

 able to reach, and found it to contain a nest constructed of dry 



