THE JACKSONIAN OOLOGICAL COLLECTION, 
PRbEnA CH. 
i Spe Collection which is described in this Volume, is the result of twenty-four years 
continuous work, as I commenced it in the year 1883; and a clutch taken in that year 
(Data No. 216) may be considered as the nucleus of the enterprise. In the early days of the 
collecting, I had little idea of the magnitude it would eventually assume, but, looking back over 
the years, a fund of pleasant memories and fascinating experiences more than counterbalances 
the endless patience and perseverance, the many disappointments, and the solid hard work 
which were necessary to bring it to its present condition. 
Out of the 766 different kinds of birds known in Australia, the eggs of 526 species are in 
the collection, and totals 1914 specimens, almost all represented by full and neatly side-blown 
clutches, and all purely Australian witb the exception of four species, viz., the King and Royal 
Penguins, Black-backed Gull, and Bennett’s Cassowary. 
There are clutches of 27 different kinds of Hawks, Falcons, Goshawks, and Eagles of the 
28 known species in Australia; also, 28 of Parrots, 7 of Cockatoos, 3 of the Rifle Bird of 
Paradise, 3 of Lyre Birds, 21 of Pigeons, 10 of Cuckoos, 9 of Kingfishers, 48 of Honey Eaters, 
6 of Bower Birds, 6 of Cuckoo Shrikes, 3 of Caterpillar Catchers or Campephagas, 18 of Fly- 
catchers and Fantails, 14 of Robins, 8 of Wood Swallows, 4 of Nightjars, 10 of Thrushes, 12 
of Quail, and also those of hundreds of other species, all of which will be found in the index at 
the back of this volume. 
I have been fortunate all through in making friends whose assistance and kindly interest 
have lightened my task considerably, and no description of the collection would be complete 
without due acknowledgment being accorded to several of them. 
First and foremost, my late and much respected friend, Mr. Wittiam McENnerny, whose 
name appears constantly in these pages, was of frequent service to me, and he assisted at the 
taking of some of the rarest eggs that now grace the cabinet. He was with me during my four 
months’ camp in the Richmond River scrubs of season 18g9-19g00, and we took together the 
first recorded clutch of the Rifle Bird of Paradise (/Ptilorhis pavadisea.) See Data No. 557. 
My brother Frank also greatly contributed to the building up of the collection, and his 
expert and utterly fearless climbing was of the greatest assistance. Some of the illustrations in 
the text give an idea of the dangerous work that was a matter of almost every day occurrence, 
and I cannot express my gratitude too warmly towards the brother whose cool head, steady 
hand and eye, were responsible for so many valuable clutches of the Hawks’ and Eagles’ eggs. 
A word is also due to Messrs. L. Vesper, J. McENerny, A. Amos and A. P. and A. Boon, 
who always gave a willing hand during my collecting trips in the Clarence River district, where 
the foundation of the collection was laid. 
Although a large proportion of the species in the cabinet was taken by myself, it would, of 
course, have been impossible to obtain a representative collection of Australian birds’ eggs 
single-handed, and I am indebted to correspondents in all parts of Australia for eggs peculiar to 
their respective localities. 
JUL 2 9 1949 
