224 AQUILINiE. 



Mr. G. A. Keartland observed this species at the junction of the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers, 

 one hundred and fifty miles inland. Gilbert met with it at Port Kssington, in the Northern 

 Territory of South Australia, where he found it breeding,' ; and it is common on the northern and 

 eastern coasts of Queensland, the late Mr. J. A. Thorpe procuring specimens at Cape York, in 

 the extreme northern part, and also at Fraser's Island, near the southern boundary of that State. 

 In intermediate localities Mr. E. A. C. Olive has obtained it at Cooktown, Mr. I'rank Hislop 

 found it breeding on the lUoomlit-kl Kiver, Messrs. Cairn and Grant observed it near Cairns, 

 and the late Mr. J. Kainbird obtained iiirds, nests and eggs at Port Denison. In New South 

 Wales I observed it at the entrance of the Tweed Rixer Heads, Dr. E. P. Ramsay procured 

 specimens at the Richmond River, Mr. G. Saxidge noted it at the Clarence Ri\er Heads, Mr. 

 R. Grant met with it at the Bellinger River Heads, and Lewin shot one in iSoi on the Lower 

 Hunter River, where Gould also observed a single example many years later; this is the 

 furthest south I ha\e known this species to occur. 



From the Bloomfield River, North-eastern ( Hieensland, Mr. b'rank Hislop sends me the 

 following note : — " The White-breasted Sea-Eagle sometimes builds on the same tree in which 

 the Shining Calornis have their nests. The two nests I saw were both in the scrub, in very tall 

 trees ; one a White Pine, about half a mile from our home. ' Wyalla.' Both nests were about 

 four or li\e miles from the sea coast. The Aboriginal name for the«pecies is ' Carparra.' " 



I have made the following extracts from Mr. E.J. Banfield's interesting work ■ when referring 

 to the fauna of Dunk Island, lying off the coast of North-eastern (Queensland, to the north of 

 Kennedy Bay, and which for many years past he has preserved as a bird sanctuary : — .Ml the 

 forest brood do not plot mutual slaughter. Some live in strict amity. Here on this Moreton 

 Bay Ash, taken advantage of (as a nesting tree) by the Shining Calornis, a White-headed Rufous- 

 backed Sea- Eagle nests, and the graceful fierce looking pair come and go among the glittering 

 noisy throng without exciting any special comment. .\ow tiie White-headed Sea-Eagle, with 

 its sharp incurved beak, terrible talons, and armour-plated legs, is a friend to all the little birds. 

 They know and respect and almost venerate him. A horde of them never seeks to scare him away 

 with angry scolding and fierce assault, as it does the cruel Falcon and the daring Goshawk. 

 Domestic fowls learn of his ways, and are wise in their fearlessness of him. But I was not well 

 assured of the reason for the trustfulness and admiration of the smaller birds for the fierce-looking 

 fellow, who spends most of his time fishing, until direct and conclusive evidence was forth- 

 coming. Two days of rough weather, and the blue bay had become discoloured with mud 

 churned up by the sea, and the Eagle found fishing poor and unremunerative sport. liven his 

 keen eyesight could not distinguish in the mucky water the coming and going of the fish. Just 

 near the house is a small area of partly cleared Hat, and there we saw the brave fellow roaming 

 and swooping about with more than usual interest in the affairs of dry land. At this time of 

 year green snakes are fairly plentiful. Harmless and handsome they prey upon small birds and 

 frogs, and the Eagle had abandoned iiis patrol of the sad-hued water to take toll of the snakes. 

 After a graceful swoop down to the tips of a low-growing bush, he alighted on the dead branch 

 of a Bloodwood, one hundred and fifty yards or so away, and, with the help of a telescope his 

 occupation was revealed, he was greedily tearing to pieces a wriggling snake, gulping it in three 

 quarter yard lengths. Here was the reason for the trustfulness and respect of the little birds. 

 The Eagle was destroying the chief bugbear of their existence, the sneaking greeny-yellowy 

 murderer of their kind, and eater of their eggs, whose colour and form so harmonise with leaves 

 and thin branches, that he constantly evades the sharpest-eyed of them all, and stjueezes out 

 their lives and swallows them whole. But the big red detective could see the vile thing fifty 

 and even one hundred yards away, and once seen — well one enemy the less. In five minutes a 

 slight jerk of the neck indicated a successful observation, and he soared out, wheeled like a flash. 



* Confessions of a t<eachcomber, pp. 109-13 (igoSy, 



