l6 Iredale, Bird Life on ilic Kermadcc Islands. [isf'Ti'iy 



island, Messrs. Roy and King Bell, who whole-heartedly put 

 themselves at our service, and it is due to their knowledge of 

 the avifauna of their native isle that so much fresh information 

 has been received. Had it not been for their help I should not 

 have been able to write so confidently as I have done regarding 

 the bird-life of the Kermadecs. 



The Region of the Barrier Range. 



AN OOLOGIST'S holiday. 



By (Dr.) W. Macgillivray, Broken Hill, N.S.W. 



Part I. 



During a nine years' residence at Broken Hill, which may be 

 regarded as the capital of south-western New South Wales, I 

 have made frequent excursions into the surrounding country, in 

 order to further my knowledge of its avifauna. I propose in 

 the following notes to give an account of an excursion made 

 during September and October, 1909, in company of Mr. W. 

 M'Lennan and a party of more or less interested friends on 

 health or pleasure bent. Dr. Dobbyn (who has been my 

 companion on many previous trips), Mr. J. M'Lennan, Mark 

 Welsh (in charge of horses and culinary arrangements), my own 

 son (aged 10 years), and his boy cousin, Barney Mackay. 



I had planned to work several of the creeks which run out of 

 the Barrier Range and through the open country between 

 Broken Hill and a permanent camping place on Wyalla Lake, 

 about 100 miles to the north, in scrub country, and then to 

 return by a different route, so as to include other creeks, the 

 whole trip to occupy one month. Our means of locomotion 

 was a large express waggon, built for the back country 

 roads, and drawn by four horses. Winter rains had been fairly 

 good for a district in which desert conditions usually prevail, 

 and a fairly good growth of herbage along all the creeks 

 rendered it unnecessary for us to carry chaff or make a home- 

 stead every day to procure feed for the horses. On two previous 

 occasions our range of movement had been greatly restricted on 

 this account. 



Long before breakfast time on the iith September we were 

 crossing Stephens Creek, about 9 miles from the city, at a 

 point just above the reservoir, from which the city water supply 

 is drawn. This creek — and the description applies to most 

 creeks in the district — is shallow and sandy, bordered with 

 eucalypts and some other trees and shrubs. Our way led us 

 through a patch of porcupine-grass, which was devoid of bird 

 life ; further on Tricoloured and Orange- fronted Chats 

 {Ephthianura tricolor and E. aurifrons) and a few White- 



