148 Macgtli.ivkav, Notes on Some N . Queensland Birds, [i^f "ja,, 



he notes : — " After leaving the Leichhardt I camped at a little water- 

 hole about 7 miles from the river, on the Gregory track. It was about 

 a mile long and from 30 to 100 yards wide, dotted with small islands 

 thickly covered with tea-tree. There were numbers of blue and 

 white water-lilies gi'owing about the edge of the water-hole. After 

 lunch I went for a walk round the water-hole, and saw an old Cor- 

 morants' rookery (P. melanoleucus) in the tea-tree on an island. I 

 counted 30 nests." This species was also noted at Cape York. 



Plotus novse-hollandise. Darter. — Found breeding in company with 

 P. suiciroslris and P. melanoleucus at Byromine. No. i tree contained 

 one Darter's nest, containing four eggs ; No. 2 tree, one containing 

 four eggs ; No. 3 tree, three nests, two with four young and one with 

 five ; No. 4 tree, one nest with four eggs ; No. 5 tree, four nests, all 

 with young birds. Noted the old birds disgorging food into the 

 mouths of the young. This species was also found at Cape York. 



Sula cyanops. Masked Gannet. — At the time of Mr. M'Lennan's 

 visit to Raine Island, on loth July, 191 1, a few of these Gannets had 

 selected nesting-sites, but none had laid. One egg was laid before 

 he left on the 15th July. 



Sula piscatrix. Red-legged Gannet. — Mr. M'Lennan found, on the 

 10th July, 191 1, several nests with one egg in each and a few with 

 one young bird. Great numbers of the birds were building. 



Sula fusca (sula). Brown Gannet (Booby). — Mr. M'Lennan visited 

 Rainc Island early in July, 191 1, and fovmd this Gannet scattered 

 all over the island, but only eight nests contained two eggs each, 

 several contained one egg, and there were no young birds. Evidently 

 the birds had only started nesting. 



On 27th July, 191 1, he visited Braml:)le Cay, of which visit he 

 writes as follows : — " When at Darnley Island we heard that the 

 natives and South Sea Islanders from there and from Murray Island 

 were in the habit of paying weekly visits to Bramble Cay for the 

 purpose of getting eggs and birds for food during the breeding season, 

 and that they brought them away in boat-loads ; also that a cutter 

 had set out for Raine Island about the same time as ourselves, but 

 had to put back on account of bad weather, and that three boats had 

 just left Murray Island for Raine Island. At Bramble Cay I found 

 only two nests of the Brown Gannet containing two eggs, and three 

 containing one egg, five nests with one young bird in each, and dozens 

 of nests from which eggs had been taken. I also saw a great pile of 

 skins near a heap of ashes, where the blacks had been having a feast." 



Tachypetes (Fregata) ariel. Lesser Frigate-Bird. — Mr M'Lennan 

 noted six of these birds at Cape Grenville. They headed out to sea 

 when they reached the Cape. At Raine Island, on the 9th July, 

 191 1, he notes: — "Several colonies of Frigate-Birds were seen near 

 the beacon. Went and had a look at the Frigate-Bird colonies. They 

 were eight in number, of from three to thirt}^ nests. I counted 150 

 nests altogether, several of which contained one egg each ; two of 

 these were on the point of hatcliing. The rest of the nests contained 

 one young bird each, in all stages of plumage, from a couple of days 

 old to birds ready to fly. On the 27th July two birds only were noted 

 at Bramble Cay." 



Phaethon rubricauda. Red-tailed Tropic-Bird. — When Dr. Dobbyn 

 and I paid our very brief visit to Raine Island, in October, 1910. we 

 must have overlooked the caves in which these birds are in the habit 

 of nesting. Mr. M'Lennan's notes are as follows : — 



