THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 149 



every now and then started, and in the miserable stringy-bark 

 ranges birds of many kinds are very numerous. In the mallee 

 are to be found several kinds of ants, one of them being a large 

 black and yellow bull-dog ant. These fellows are far more pug- 

 nacious than any which I knew of before, as they jump about 

 after the style of the little and well-known black ant, with 

 the yellow mandibles, commonly known as jumpers. I was mucii 

 amused at the real fightable nature or disposition of these large 

 ants, as, when we approached the miund or nest, they sallied out 

 in droves, advancing in all directions, stopping every now and 

 then to sting the sand, but for what purpose I could not make 

 out. 1 had my forceps with me, and, upon closer examination, 

 I found they had very formidable stings, and seemed very anxious 

 to use them. This species I found only in the dense mallee, and 

 do not recollect ever to have seen it before. 



In the flats which we crossed on the return journey to Border 

 Town I noticed that the small plants— as Toxanthus Muelleri, 

 Drosera, &c., &c. — were the same as those which grow so common 

 in and around Dimboola, although I did not see a single plant of 

 Aster pimeleoides^ the handsome white shrub which I saw last year 

 on my way up from Dimboola to Albacutya. Having reached the 

 hotel, I learned that a gentleman had called during our absence 

 and reported having seen " a regular flower garden of wild flowers." 

 So, the next morning, we made an early start, and drove out 

 about eighteen miles S.E. from Border Town, passing Nelanj 

 station, which is very prettily situated on an eminence, in country 

 quite English and park-like. Upon arrival at our destination, we 

 found the said flower garden to be — well, simply the finest patch 

 of Epacris impressa that I, at least, had ever seen, the plants 

 being very robust and the flowers of the most intense, dark- 

 crimson colour, but beyond these, and a {t\N very pretty white 

 Styphelias, there was nothing else ; so I felt somewhat dis- 

 appointed. 



Returning homeward, we crossed some very wet flats, in which 

 the Otielia was just making its appearance ; and, from a few 

 straggling plants of Eutaxia etnpetrifolia, I collected a good many 

 specimens, and near to some farm houses which we passed were 

 numbers of the native hen before mentioned. [ had no idea 

 that they were so tame as they were amongst the domestic fowls 

 and ducks. Amongst the box trees, many of which were in flower, 

 I noticed several kinds of parrots, the Rose Hill, Pennants, and 

 Swift Lorikeet being the most numerous ; and the large gum trees 

 here were covered with a white scale-insect (not lerp), which was 

 quite new to me. This I intend to send, with others, to Mr. 

 Maskell, of New Zealand, whose labours amongst the Coccidse is 

 so well known and appreciated. There are a good many lizards 

 in this neighbourhood, our old friend the " wallops," or stump 



