Emu 



JO A Royal Australasian Ornithologists' Union. [,sf"j 



still flashed along the fringes of the clearings, and an odd 

 Cinclosoma sat quietly on a log as the coach rattled by ; but the 

 only additional bird listed was the light-loving White-browed 

 Wood-Swallow {Artamus superciliosns), which skimmed about the 

 paddocks near Orbost. This trim little town was reached at 

 mid-day on Thursday, and, as though a 90-mile coach ride had not 

 been enough, the quartette secured a buggy that afternoon and 

 drove 10 miles to Mario. The best of the rich Snowy River flats 

 are passed on this trip to the coast, and it did one good to note 

 their luxuriance. Next to the enterprising Starlings, which are 

 there in thousands, the most plentiful birds along the river 

 frontage are the Bell-Miners. A young one, fully grown, was 

 caught for the. cameras, and it was curious to note how the 

 customary musical note of the parents changed to a harsh Miner- 

 like protest as they grew excited. The juvenile had remarkably 

 strong, sharp claws. 



Orbost was left early next morning, and from thence to Nowa 

 Nowa^26 miles — excursionists did little but hang tight as the 

 coach rattled over the absolutely vile road, and admire the skill 

 of the driver in dodging ruts and trees. Warm interest was, 

 however, aroused by the splendid patches of scarlet bottle-brush 

 that were occasionally passed, and by the attractiveness of 

 Hospital, Wombat, and other creeks. At the little Nowa Nowa 

 settlement there was just time for the securing of a few photo- 

 graphs of the rock-bound Boggy Creek — a curiously inappropriate 

 name — before climbing aboard a motor-car and doing the rough 

 35-mile stretch to Baii"nsdale in a couple of exhilarating hours. The 

 afternoon train was caught with a few minutes to spare, and Mel- 

 bourne regained some time after 10 o'clock on the Friday evening. 



A hurried examination of the material obtained at Mallacoota has 

 proved interesting. It reveals some unexpected relationships to 

 the birds of Kangaroo Island. Further study is desirable, for the 

 similarity of fauna of south-east and south-west Austraha has 

 led to many theories of past geogra.phical changes. A. R. Wallace 

 considered Austraha to consist of two islands, though that is not 

 held now. Professor Gregory, on geographical grounds, com- 

 pared Australia to a trident, with three prongs projecting north- 

 wards ; most of the base of the trident has disappeared. The 

 Antarctic connection referred to in the introduction of his 1913 

 list by Mr. Mathews, and questioned by the reviewer in The Ibis, 

 is almost an axiom with Austrahan zoologists. A close study 

 of the avifauna will assist materially in providing evidence for a 

 definite conclusion on these points. 



The Societe d' Acclimatisation de France had a special medal 

 struck, and presented it to Dr. W. T. Hornaday, Director of the 

 New York Zoological Park, in recognition of the wonderful work 

 he has done in connection with the protection of birds in the 

 United States. No man, in America or any other country, has 

 done more than Dr. Hornaday to save vanishing wild life. 



