374 NOTES ON THE VICTORIA LYRE BIRD. 



I reineinber seeing a recently made track over the Bogong Pass, 

 in Victoria, which had been rendered impractical )le for horse traffic 

 though being filled nj) in some places with masses of rock, logs of 

 wood, and other debris. These had rolled down the steep sides of the 

 mountain on account of their supports of humus and soil having 

 been scratched away by these birds. Again, it is often impossible 

 to exactly locate a survey trench or peg in lyre bird {'' pheasant," 

 as it is called by selectors) country, sometimes even shortly after 

 they have been placed there. This causes some difficulty when the 

 lilaze (ax-cut mark) on the tree has been destroyed by bush fires. 

 This habit of scratching among decayed vegetation and soil may 

 account for the al)undance of lice which Mr. W. Bragwanath, jr., 

 informs me, are to be found on most of these birds in the Baw^ Baw 

 district of (jippsland. 



I have spoken of the flight of lyre birds as a floating. As far 

 as I have noticed they do not rise upAvard in the air like a soaring 

 bird, and can not make a proper upward flight. But in going to 

 a lower place they simply jump off a log or rock into the air with 

 their wings outspread, and float or glide through it down a slope 

 into a gully, sometimes taking advantage, every here and there, 

 of a log or rock from which to get an additional spring. In a few 

 seconds they can descend several hundreds of feet with very little 

 apparent motion of the wings. It is an interesting sight to see the 

 dark brown forin of a departing lyre bird as it hops on a fallen 

 tree, floats under a tree fern, or jumps off into space — silent, save 

 for its first shrill wdiistle of alarm. While lyre birds are fond of 

 tree-fern gullies and dogwood {Cassifiia aculeata and C. lonqifolia)^ 

 "native hop'' {Daviesla latlfolia), and ''wild hop" {Goodenia 

 onafa) slopes and ridges, they are very partial to the patches of 

 ''blanket wood" {Senecio hedfordi). This plant grows into small 

 trees with lateral branches, and large, thick leaves, arranged more 

 or less horizontally, thus foi'ming a canopy. The ground beneath 

 is usually not covered with ferns and small plants, but with decayed 

 leaves and twigs, while the branches form convenient perches for 

 the lyre birds. There are thus open spaces between the foliage 

 and the ground, and the birds are fond of moving about in them, 

 hence the scrub is called locally " pheasant scrub." 



My thanks are tendered to Messrs. A. J. Campbell, D. Le Souef, and 

 F. P. Godfrey for six of the photographs which illustrate this 

 article. 



