2l8 Whitlock, Oh the East Mitrchison. [.s^Aprii 



hissing, spitting, and liuttcring oi wings, at mc dashed a Bovver-Bird. 

 She was violently agitated, and almost brushed my face with her 

 wings, uttering at the same time loud, clear notes, imitations of the 

 cry of the Black-throated Butcher-Bird. I was soon up to the nest, 

 which was barely 15 feet from the ground. I cautiously felt inside. 

 There were two eggs. I raised one into view ; it was a typical Bower- 

 Bird's egg. Down 1 went for cloth cap and wadding, and soon had 

 the satisfaction of gazing on two perfect specimens of these rare and 

 little-known eggs. They were similar to eggs of C. maculaia, but 

 hardly so glossy — the ground colour a delicate French grey or greenish- 

 grey. The markings were of various shades of brown The lighter 

 brown markings were in the form of continuous lines, wound in and 

 out, in a more or less circular manner, ai"ound the wider part of 

 the shell. The darker markings were in the form of irregular blotches 

 of colour, but they are hardly so bright and pronounced as in typical 

 eggs of C. maciilata. In shape this pair may be described as slightly 

 elongated ovals, with no very great distinction between either end. 

 The eggs were quite fresh. It will be convenient to give the measure- 

 ments here :— Specimen «, 1.48 x 1.07 inches; b, 1.52 x 1.05 inches. 

 The nest was near the top of the casuarina tree, and was outwardly 

 an irregular-shaped structure of dried and black twigs. The cup was 

 fairly well defined, but rather shallow. It had a lining of fine twigs, 

 with a few casuarina needles. The lining was sufficiently substantial 

 to hide the contents of the nest from below. After I had robbed the 

 nest the parent bird quietened down and made no further hostile 

 demonstration towards me. As I packed the eggs she remained sitting 

 on a neighbouring branch. 



There was a point to be cleared up concerning the plumage of the 

 female. In Hall's " Key " — compiled largely from the British Museum 

 " Catalogue of Birds " — the female of C. maculata is said to have no 

 lilac band, and as nothing is said to the contrary in referring to the 

 female of C. guttata, we may assume, too, that she in turn was thought 

 to possess no lilac band. Now, during my close watching of the party 

 of seven at the acacia thicket I became aware that three of the 

 performers possessed this so-called lilac band. Two of them, however, 

 were much less strongly marked in this respect than the adult male I 

 called the stage manager. From his behaviour towards one of these 

 individuals I felt sure the latter was a female. Now was the 

 opportunity to prove my theory. Though very loth to do it, I shot 

 this bird. I had to take into consideration the scepticism too often 

 meted out to the field naturalist when his observations are unsupported 

 by tangible evidence. On dissection, my suspicions proved to be 

 correct — she was a fully adult female. Whilst on this subject, let 

 me repeat that the colour of this nuchal band is not lilac, but in these 

 East Murchison birds of a vivid pink, with just a suspicion of silvery- 

 lilac when viewed in certain lights. In the female it is much smaller 

 than in the male, and rather difficult to detect when the bird is in 

 repose. The same is the case with the male, the band in both sexes 

 then appearing as a narrow longitudinal stripe, rather more conspicuous 

 in the male than in the female. Immature birds possess no trace of 

 this colouration whatever ; but a male, probably in his second year 

 and non-breeding, showed as much colour as an adult female. The 

 plumage of the adult male in my birds is black on the upper parts, 

 with a slight velvety gloss. The spots, which are most numerous near 

 the hind neck but largest on the greater coverts, vary from fawn- 



