THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 71 



A RAMBLE THROUGH THE HEATH-GROUND FROM 



OAKLEIGH TO SANDRINGHAM. 



By C. French, F.L.S. 



(Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, 8t/i September, 



1890.) 

 Early spring, more especially to those who love flowers, has a 

 peculiar attraction for the field naturalist, whether he remains near 

 home or elects to go further afield. Be this as it may, the writer of 

 these few not p s, on Saturday morning, the 30th August, 1890, 

 decided upon making a short walking excursion to the heath ground, 

 the plan agreed upon being to take the early morning train to 

 Oakleigh, and from there walk across to Cheltenham township, on 

 to Beaumaris, and from thence to Sandringham, the two latter 

 places being settlements on the shores of Port Phillip Bay, and 

 formerly known as Gipsy Village and Beaumaris respectively. 

 Starting from the South Yarra railway station, in company with 

 my son, we soon reached Oakleigh, a station about ten miles 

 from Melbourne, on the main Gippsland line of railway. The 

 weather looked somewhat threatening, and we had our waterproofs 

 with us, which, as we afterwards had occasion to find out, was an 

 unnecessary precaution, for the day turned out to be beautifully 

 fine, the sun having emerged from his hiding place and now shone 

 with brilliancy. Leaving Oakleigh and. steering in a south- 

 westerly direction, between hedges of Acacia armata, which were 

 loaded with fragrant flowers, and passing near the house where 

 Power, the once well-known bushranger, now lives, we soon came 

 on to the heath-ground ; and here we found many old favourites — a 

 fine pair, male and female, of the Flame-breasted Robin being 

 perched on a fence within a few yards of us, and seemed to be 

 quite at home, and appeared to be utterly oblivious of the 

 presence of field naturalists. The well-known call of the Har- 

 monious Thrush was also heard here, whilst our youthful oologist 

 kept a sharp look-out for nests, peering into dark and uncanny- 

 looking places in the thickest of the furze (Ulex), which, although 

 so pretty, has become quite a scourge to the owners of land in 

 this and similar districts around Melbourne. It may not be out 

 of place to mention that those of us who like to see the old 

 English plants in Victoria can procure a double form of the furze 

 quite as beautiful as the single one, but which does not seed ; so, 

 consequently, it cannot spread. The Epacrids, some of which 

 have been in bloom for some months, are now at their best. 

 Epacris impressa, with its charming variety of colours, varying 

 from the purest white to crimson, is to be found here in 

 quantity, although the coloured varieties are evidently becoming 

 scarcer on account of being gathered by children and others. 

 Sprengelia incarnata, with its singular blooms and prickly stem, is 

 now in full flower, and we gather some for the table. The head 



