36 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



out grass. There were some fresh berries and small land 

 shells lying about the bower. 



ScENOP^us DENTiROSTRis, Eamsay. 

 Tooth-billed Cat-Bird. 



i^if/wre.— Goald-Sharpe, Birds of New Guinea, vol. i. pi. 43. 

 Reference.— Qzi. B. Brit. Mu8., vi. p. 394. 



Geographical Distribution. — North Queensland. 



Nest and Eggs. — Unknown. 



Observations. — So far as is known the Tooth-billed Bower- 

 Bird is restricted to the scrubs of Northern Queensland. 

 Mr Kendall Broadbent writes : — " This interesting species 

 has been obtained by me on the Tully River, 24 miles from 

 Cardwell, at Cairns, at Herbert Gorge, and at Sea View 

 Range, as far above the level of the sea as the scrubs extend, 

 but always in the mountains, stray individuals only descend- 

 ing below 2000 feet. 



" It excels all other Bower- Birds as a mimic, and may be 

 fitly termed the master mocking-bird of Australia. Not only 

 will it imitate the note of every bird in its neighbourhood, 

 but so closely does it do so, that they are drawn to it as to 

 one of their own kind. This is especially the case during the 

 breeding season, and in May I have remained at one spot in 

 the Herberton scrubs by the half hour, listening with wonder 

 to its changeful utterances. Its bower, or dancing-ground, 

 is of a unique description ; a small portion of the ground 

 of the scrub being rendered perfectly bare for the space of a 

 square yard or so, save the presence of seven to nine large 

 leaves, which the bird has placed therein, and with which 

 it plays. These leaves, which are those of a particular kind 

 of tree, it renews every morning." 



Mr Broadbent has kindly given me an original sketch 

 showing the locality and one of these circular play-grounds 

 found by him in the Cardwell ranges. 



Mr Le Souef tells me that during his peregrinations in the 

 Bloomfield River district he came across about a dozen play- 

 grounds of the Tooth-billed Cat-Bird. They were found in 



