162 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



shades, the dull shades appearing as if under the shell's surface. 

 Length, 2 inches 2|-3^ lines; breadth, i inch 7^ lines. 



Anous melanogenys (Black-cheeked Noddy Tern). 

 Locality — Coast of North Queensland and throughout Polynesia. 

 Egg—Oi a soft, warm, white colour, sparingly smudged and 

 spotted with rusty brown, the markings being generally confined 

 to the larger end of the shell. A few clouded markings also 

 appear underlying the shell's surface. Dimensions fairly regular ; 

 average of six examples is i inch 9! lines x i inch 3i lines. The 

 Rev. F. M. Nobbs, who kindly forwarded specimens, informs me 

 that this tern breeds on Norfolk Island during December. It 

 breeds in colonies. One egg only is deposited in a nest of sea- 

 weed, very firmly secured to branches of trees. Some nests are 

 placed on large trees, half a mile inland ; others on dwarf scrub, 

 close to the sea shore. (A. J. C, Victorian Naturalist, 

 September, 1888.) 



Larus longirostris — {Long-billed Gull). Locality — West 

 Australia. Egg — Long in shape, of a light olive colour, fairly 

 distributed all over with spots and patches of darker olive and 

 grey, the latter colour, as usual, appearing as if under the shell's 

 surface. Length, 2 inches 2 lines ; breadth, i inch 5 lines. 



573. Porzana fluminea (Spotted Water Crake). Locality — 

 Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and 

 Tasmania. Egg — Ground colour pale olive, very minutely freckled 

 with reddish brown, and also fairly distributed with larger mark- 

 ings, or round blotches, of reddish and purplish brown. Shell 

 comparatively strong, finely grained, and surface polished. The 

 eggs resemble in a remarkable degree Porphyrio and Gallinule's 

 eggs in miniature. Length, i inch 3 lines ; breadth, \q\ lines. 



I am indebted to Mr. E. D. Atkinson for the pleasure of first 

 examining and describing a set of these rare and interesting eggs. 

 It may be remembered, in describing the eggs of Lewin's Rail 

 ( Hypotxnidia brachiptis), in my last " Supplement," I stated that 

 Gould had in error described one of the Porzaim—2iXi error quite 

 pardonable, considering the similar habits of both birds. It will 

 now be seen there is no room to doubt that the Spotted Crake's 

 eggs were taken by the great author for the Rail's. 



Mr. A. E. Brent, by the aid of a favourite Gordon setter, was 

 very successful in finding three of the Spotted Crake's nests in 

 the reedy lagoons formed by the overflow of the River Derwent, 

 in Tasmania, and, therefore, had ample opportunities for identi- 

 fying the birds. He states that two nests contained each four 

 eggs, and the other five. It was about the first week in Novem- 

 ber. The nests were among bunches of rushes, partly on the 

 water and constructed of aquatic weeds for foundation, and lined 

 with soft " band " grass, which was damp. A staging or track 

 led up from the water to the nest. 



