02 Barnard, Visit to Torilla Plains. [^f" 



mu 

 Oct. 



took hold of one platform, and was surprised at its strength. 

 I could hardly shake it, and when I stood upon it it neither sagged 

 nor shook with my weight. The contents of the nests varied 

 greatly. In one platform of, say, six nests, there were eggs just 

 chipping, sets of fresh eggs, and nests not yet laid in, while a 

 few feet away I saw young birds almost able to fly. If heavy 

 rains occur while the birds are nesting hundreds of nests are 

 swamped by the rising waters, and the eggs or chicks destroyed ; 

 while, on the other hand, if the wet season ends suddenly, and 

 the waters dry up, the slower-maturing birds, such as Swans. 

 Geese, &c., die in hundreds because of their inability to travel to 

 more favourable localities. The nests of the Pied Geese and Swans 

 mostly contained incubated eggs, one Goose's nest having the 

 unusually large complement of sixteen. Ducks' nests were fairly 

 plentiful at this spot, but the majority nested in the long grass 

 on the drier portions of the plain. We saw several nests of the 

 Whistling-Duck {Dendrocygna arciiata). White-eyed Duck {Nyroca 

 australis). Black Duck {Anas siiperciliosa), and secured a nest of 

 the Plumed Whistling-Duck {Dendrocygna eytoni) with thirteen 

 eggs. The nest of a Shoveller {Spatula rhynchotis) was also 

 secured. These Ducks select as a nesting site a patch of dry 

 ground with very short grass, and generally some distance from 

 water. " Burdekin Ducks" {Tadorna rufitergum) were also seen 

 in occasional pairs, but, although I saw them perching in the 

 fringe of gums surrounding the plain, I was unable to secure a 

 nest. A peculiar fact which I noted was that I never saw a 

 Wood-Duck, a Black-throated Grebe, or a Bald-Coot during my 

 visit. Why had such a body of water, luxuriant with masses of 

 vegetation, no attraction for these species ? 



A large sand-ridge on one side of the plain was tenanted by 

 White-necked Herons {Notophoyx pacifica), but all had young 

 birds of almost the same age, the cracked shells lying on the 

 ground beneath the nests. I ascended a tree which had a 

 Whistling-Eagle's {Haliastur sphenurus) nest besides five of the 

 Herons', and obtained a ver> pretty pair of eggs. A very 

 dull-coloured clutch of three of this species was taken from 

 a species of mangrove tree, the nest not being lo feet above the 

 water. The next day I visited two colonies of Royal Spoonbills 

 {Platalea regia), situated in a tea-tree swamp. The colonies were 

 only about 300 yards apart, but, singularly enough, in one the 

 nests almost all had young, and in the other I did not see a young 

 bird. I should estimate the larger colony to contain about 

 200 nests. 



Three species of Egrets were plentiful, and we made a gallant 

 attempt to visit their abode ; but after plunging and struggling 

 through dense mangroves for a considerable time we came upon 

 the banks of a large, swiftly-running tidal creek, in the middle 

 of which, upon an island covered with mangroves, the Egrets 

 were apparently nesting in hundreds. There was no boat to be 

 got, and my desire to swim across was checked by the certain 



