PROCEEDINGS OF SECTION D. 479 
industry has not developed, as no one else has had the spirit to 
follow in their footsteps, and at present, though the adaptability 
of the lower Murray country to the ostrich has been fully proved, 
there seems very little probability of the industry being followed 
up; one reason, no doubt, is the great difference at times in the 
price of feathers, which suffer much from the caprice of fashion, 
and are not, like wool, always in demand. 
That splendid game bird, the pheasant, was introduced by the 
Society many years ago and efforts were made to acclimatise it, 
numbers being liberated in various parts of the country; but no 
success attended these early efforts, and it was not till the Zoo- 
logical Society secured a block of land at Gembrook, then a newly- 
settled district, that the birds increased to any extent. For 
some years a considerable number were liberated there every 
season, and they increased and spread considerably for miles 
around ; but then came the rabbits, and in destroying these the 
pheasants also suffered. There are still a few to be found on 
different properties, but as a matter of acclimatisation the experi- 
ment cannot be said to be a success, although at one time it 
promised to be so, as the birds were breeding fairly well and 
many young broods were seen; but poisoned grain and domestic 
cats turned loose have done their work, and the pheasants have 
nearly disappeared. 
Californian quail, a very fine bird, about two-thirds the size of 
a partridge, were a great success at Gembrook for some years, 
and the original fifty birds liberated there increased to many 
hundreds ; but suddenly they began to disappear, and now there 
is not a bird to be seen, and it is a mystery to me what has 
become of them. They certainly were not shot, and I never 
heard of any that had been found dead, nor could we learn that 
they had migrated, but the fact remains that they have gone. 
It must be remembered that there are very few berry-bearing 
bushes in Victoria, and the birds have many enemies ; the native 
cat, or Mange’s dasyure, the tiger cat, or spotted-tailed dasyure, 
the iguana, or Gould’s monitor, the snake, laughing jackass, or 
giant kingfisher, the hawk, etc., all prey on the young birds. 
The partridge was introduced many years ago, and seemed to 
succeed for a time, but bush fires carried them off. Now that 
large tracts of land are under cultivation, it would be much easier 
to introduce and establish them than in former years ; but it could 
not be done unless they were protected by law. 
The European thrush has been successfully established, but has 
spread very slowly, although it is plentiful on the south side of 
the Yarra, in the gardens of Toorak and the surrounding districts, 
but it has not made its appearance in any numbers in the northern 
suburbs, although a few are to be seen occasionally. 
The blackbird does not seem to thrive in Victoria. This is, no 
doubt, principally from the want of berry-bearing bushes, which 
