YEG 
GEOLOGICAL AGE OF THE Various Birp Remains. 
As to the geological age of the various bones Mr. Etheridge 
remarks :—‘ The femora” (Wellington Caves, Peak Downs and 
King’s Creek) “and the tibia” (Mount Gambier) “ coming from 
what may be generally termed Quaternary deposits may, for 
argument’s sake, be considered of the same geological age. But 
it is questionable if the pelvis from the Canadian Lead can be so 
regarded. As previously stated it was found at a depth of 200 
ft. in an auriferous lead of supposed Pliocene age, and it is there- - 
fore somewhat premature to class these remains as all of one 
period. Rather, would it not be better to consider the pelvis 
from the Canadian Lead as one of the earliest bird remains yet 
extant on this continent, and of Pliocene age; and those from 
the other localities as representing a Post-Pliocene period.” * 
As to the Penola remains the discrepancies in Mr. Woods’ 
statements as to their position have already been alluded to, but 
the expression of belief from a geologist in the contemporaneity 
of the bird with the natives and the distinct assertion, in one of 
his notices of the remains, that they were found “in one of the 
kitchen middens of the natives of South Australia, The bones 
were marked by the scrapings and cuttings of the flint knives of 
the blacks,” at least implies a recent period. + 
With regard to the Normanville and Baldina Creek fossils we 
are informed by Mr. Howchin that some uncertainty exists as to 
whether the deposits in which they were found should be regarded 
as Pliocene or Pleistocene. 
At Callabonna the fossiliferous formation was determined by 
Professor Tate ¢ to be Pliocene. 
* 
Tue Discovery oF BirRD-BONES AT LAKE CALLABONNA. 
Some reference was made to the discovery of bird-bones in the 
papers in ‘‘ Nature” already referred to, but it may not be with- 
out interest to add, in this place, a few further details. These we 
quote in the first person singular as proceeding from the one of 
us (A.Z.) who personally conducted the operations at Lake 
Callabonna. 
“The level bottom of Callabonna Lake, the characters of which 
have been described,|| shows, in some places, small elevations 
of about two square feet in size,§ formed of concretionary lime- 
* Op. cit., p. 129, 
+ Proc. Lin. Soc., N.S.W., 1882, Vol. VII., p. 387. 
+ ** Nature,” 1894, Vol. L., p. 207. 
‘* Nature,” Vol. L., p. 187. 
§ These elevations are distinguished from those covering the skeletons 
of Kangaroos and Diprotodons by their smaller size and by the presence of 
pebbles. 
M 
