72 



Howe and Tregellas, Rarer Birds of the Mallee. [^.^"oct 



We left Ouyen at noon, and reached Murrayville at about 7.30 

 p.m. When Messrs. J. A. Ross and F. E. Howe were camped 

 here in 1908 the place was known as No. 8 Bore, but now it is 

 a flourishing township. Here we were met by Mr. Scarce, our 

 voluntary guide on all our trips. He intimated that we had 

 better have tea at once, as we were to drive out some 10 miles. 

 The meal over, we packed our impedimenta and ourselves into a 

 buggy and drove to the residence of a Mr. Sporn, where we spent 

 the night. After breakfast next day we drove on to the farm 

 of Mr. W. Ribbons. The people in this locahty are famed for 

 their hospitality, and, though the day was young, we had to wait 

 and partake of tea, white bread, and beautiful cream. Mean- 

 while, our luggage was transferred to a cart and sent on an hour 

 ahead of us, as we had a long trip to do, and the roads, where not 

 grubbed, are heavy. Bidding this large and happy family adieu, 

 we again took to the track. Mr. Ribbons drove the three of us 

 in his buggy as far as the road permitted. Catching up to the 

 cart, we dined at a bore. From here the buggy returned, and we 

 were left with a lo-mile walk before us. As we could not afford 

 to spend much time in the scrub, we kept mostly to the road, 

 going into the scrub only when some rare bird called or the bush 

 looked particularly " good." The character of the country 

 altered very little, and, generally speaking, consisted of short 

 mallee timber, with here and there turpentine or small tea-tree 

 flats, the usual sand-ridge running east and west, and, occasionally, 

 a hmestone ridge. The bush was beautiful this morning, all the 

 shrubs being in bloom ; the mallee itself was mostly in blossom. 

 Honey-eating birds called on every side, and we identified many 

 Honey-eaters, including the Purple-gaped, Ptilotis cratitia 

 {Lichenostomus c. howei), the Yellow-plumed, Ptilotis ornata 

 {Lichenostomus 0. tailemi). Tawny-crowned, Glyciphila fidvifrons 

 {G. melanops chandleri). White-fronted, G. albifrons {G. a. incerta), 

 and the I31ack-eared Miner, Myzantha melanotis [M. flavigula 

 melanotis), all feeding on the flowering tea-tree. On every sand- 

 ridge the Gilbert Whistler, Pachycephala gilberti {Gilbertornis 

 rufogidaris riifogidaris), Purple-backed Wren-Warbler, Malurus 

 assimilis {Leggeornis lamherti assimilis), and Yellow-rumped 

 Pardalote, Pardalotus xanthopygius {Pardalotiis pundatus xantho- 

 pygtis), were seen. Whenever we passed a tea-tree flat, the call- 

 note of the Scrub-Robin, Drymodes brunneopygius {Drymodes b. 

 victorice), was heard. Walking through some porcupine grass 

 (false spinifex, Triodia), we flushed a Striated Grass-Wren, 

 Amytornis striata {Mytisa striata howei), from a nest containing 

 two young, a few days old. This was the only nest of this rare 

 species that was seen on the trip, and, although the birds were 

 very plentiful all through the porcupine country, they were so 

 shy that we were unable to obtain specimens. After we had 

 crossed a tea-tree flat a male Scrub-Robin attracted us by its 

 excited manner, and much time was spent in looking for the 

 nest. Giving it up, we walked on, but after going about 50 yards 



