fiLOSSOPSlTTACU.S. 53 



Adult >iali;. — (JKHPrnl cohmr nJun-f. awl hflon- ((raas ijrf.va: facf rfil : I'ar-covfts cputred iritli 

 /iri(/hfi-r yre'i/ ; hitid-nrrk and in/firsrapu/n.r rft/iiDi. olire diriiirn ; jirimarms and secondari/'s hlackish- 

 hnm-ii, rji-een on tlcir n>il,-r irrlm r.nvjit f/o' firs/ /irimari/ : under gurfaw of Ilia tniJ-frathers i/eUo>rish ; 

 iiinprwfhsofaJlhnttlirliiHiCf.ntrefnathfrg red a1 Uie. hasp ; hill hlack, Ii((sp of the lou'pr mandihlp 

 dull red'iifli-i'ni !/;/'■ : fp<l olivp.-grpt/ ; iris ofanr/p. Total length In thp fcsh 7-2 inches, ming Jf, tail 

 .'.'■.-7, hill 0-y>, tarsus OJ/. 



Adult femalK. — Similar in plntna;/,- in thp nialp, hut slii/hth/ snialler and dullpr in colour on 

 llip facp. 



Disirihnt.ion — (.hieenslmul, New South Wales, \'ictoria, South Austraha, Tasmania. 



" T"(y^ KKC.ISl".L^^ similar to the precedin.ti species is the range of the Little Lorikeet, and 

 -L. these birds are often found in company with one another. In AustraHa it appears to be 



equally abundant in all the Eastern States, and was the first species of the family Loriid;e in 

 \'ictoria of which I obtained specimens. Near Sydney it is extremely abundant, in some 

 seasons, from April to the end uf June, in the neighbourhood of Toon^abbie, Se\en Hills and 

 lUacktown. In the tormer locality, on one occasion I shot a number of them, while feeding in 

 company with Glossopsi/tiuiis coiuiuniis, and several species of Money-eaters. Repeated firing 

 into the tree failed to disturb these birds as their compatriots fell wounded and screeching to 

 the ground. Like that species, too, the feathers of the head and neck became soiled with the 

 nectar they disgorged as they fell from the tree. Although the smallest species of Lorikeet, a 

 wt)unded bird can inflict a severe bite if incautiously handled. 



The food of this species is principally nectar, extracted from the various species of Eucalypts. 

 1 ha\e never known it to attack cultivated fruits, nor to be caught like Glussopsittacus ccncinnus 

 or Trichtw/ossus nov(r-]iollandur on snare poles. 



Mr. H. G. Barnard, of I-3imbi, Duaringa, (Jueensland, has sent me the following notes: — 

 " On the jth September, 190S, I was chopping out a nest of the Little Lorikeet (G/ossopsiffncits 

 pusiHiis), and on opening the limb found young birds, and to my surprise there were a number of 

 the common fowl ticks crawling about on the inside of the hole. Now how did the ticks come 

 there, for the fowl tick is an importation, and a deadly one among domestic poultry. The nestin" 

 place was thirty feet from the ground, and fully half a mile from our fowl-house, where we have 

 the fowl ticks, but the Little Lorikeets never come near the place. The young birds did not 

 seem to be affected in any way by the ticks. Glossopsittaciis p}isi/!iis is \ery plentiful here, and I 

 took many sets in iqoj, but was too late for them in 1908. The same notes that I have given 

 on Psitttiiti-lcs cliloi'ohpidotiis applies also to this species, except that the number of eggs laid for 

 a sitting is four instead of two." 



From Copmanhurst, Upper Clarence River, New South Wales, Mr. George Savidge sent me 

 the following note : — " The Little I^orikeet is by far the scarcest of the three species of Lorikeet 

 that inhabit the Clarence River District. It is usually found in pairs or small flocks of five or 

 six birds, sometimes in company with the others, and were it not for their screech it would not 

 often be noticed. It is an early breeder, commencing to lay about the end of June ; the eggs 

 are usually four (I once found five), which are placed on the decayed wood in a hole of a tree, 

 usually high up. This species makes a very interesting pet, and talks well." 



From Melbourne, X'ictoria, Mr. G. A. Keartland wrote me in March, igog: — "Many years 

 ago Glossflpiittdiiis pitiillus was to be seen wherever Eucalyptus trees existed around Melbourne, 

 but about eighteen years ago they became very scarce, and five years elapsed before I could 

 shoot a pair for specimens. However, they are now to be seen or heard everywhere as soon as 

 the blossom appears on the trees. During a visit to Wagga, on the Murrumbidgee River, New 

 South Wales, I saw three broods of young ones of dififerent ages in the same tree. As soon as 

 fully feathered the young ones are coloured and marked almost exactly like their parents." 

 u 



