S6 



CACATUID.E. 



then Hy in to the creek, and settle on one or more trees, according to the numlier of birds, and 

 amuse themselves during the rest of the day in stripping every leaf, twig and nearly all the bark 

 oh the trees; in this way they completely destroy many trees, as far as all the upper limbs are 

 concerned. When one tree is fairly bare, they devote their attention to another, and treat it 

 similarly ; towards evening they again fly on to the plains to feed for an hour or two before 



leturning to roost. A small bulbous plant 

 growing in patches on the plains is a 

 favourite article of diet, and it is also 

 relished by the blacks. It breeds during 

 the wet season." 



Later on 1 >r. W . Maci;illi\ray wrote 



rr-- ^«y^a^«>^ ^ ^ Ma^ W>/f^■g■ ■^:i^' -^MP — «^3«!a» ine as follows from Broken Hill, in South- 

 f ^^^-'' «V '^SRB9s£JH ^^KK^^MSM^M western New South Wales: — •' Cmatna 



■•iiiiL;:i!:if(i is a very common bird here at 

 all seasons. They do not migrate from 

 the district, but cons^regate in whatever 

 part has the most abundant food supply, 

 and this ot course depends upon our 

 autumn and spring rains, which are often 

 \ery patchy and variable in amount, or 

 often absent altogether ; the class of 

 herbage which comes up depends upon 

 the time when the rain has been most 

 abundant. When the season is \ ery dry 

 few of these birds breed at all. The birds 

 are all of the one type, being white with 

 sulphur tinting of the primaries and 

 rectrices, and an orange-red tinting of the 

 lores ; this reddish colouring is more 

 marked in very young birds. The hare 

 skin round the eyes is always of a leaden 

 colour, being lighter or darker as there is 

 less or more powder down upon it. The 

 breeding season commences latein August, 

 eL,'gs are abundant in September, and 

 young birds in October, although in a very 

 good season young birds may be taken 

 after the New Year. iJut whether good or 

 bad season, the first eggs are in\ariably 

 laid during the last week in August. 

 They nest on all the creeks about here in 

 the Gums, at an average height of about 

 twenty-five feet, the hollow averaging 

 three feet in depth. The eggs are almost invariably three in number, sometimes two; I only 

 once remember seeing four young ones taken from a nest. The eggs repose on the decayed 

 wood dust and chippings at the bottom of the hollow. The entrance is often bitten round by 

 the bird, and a little piece of white down frequently adheres to it, and is a sure indication that a 

 bird has been in or out. The young leave the nest about a month after being hatched, and 

 are fed for some time by the parents. 



AT A NKSTIXC: Pr.ACE OF TllK 1!L00D-.STAINKD COCKATOO. 



