208 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



which he referred to the various countries where work among 

 birds still remained to be done, and in speaking of the Australian 

 region said that, as Gould's Handbook was published in 1865, it 

 was quite time to have a new work on the subject ; and in a later 

 letter to Mr. D. Le Souef he says that the establishment of an 

 Ornithological Union in Australia is a step in the right direction, 

 and the preparation of a new " Handbook of the Birds of Aus- 

 tralia" would be a fine subject for the Australian Ornithologists' 

 Union to take up. 



Victorian Geology. — We are pleased to record that the work 

 done in Victorian geology by Mr; T. S. Hall, M.A., assistant 

 lecturer in Biology at the Melbourne University, and one of the 

 vice-presidents of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, has been 

 recognized by the Geological Society of London by the award to 

 him of the prize known as the Murchison Fund. 



Ferocity of Magpies When Nesting.— A note by Mr. C. 

 French, jun., on this subject appeared in the November number 

 of the Victorian Naturalist. When at Warracknabeal I knew of 

 many magpie nests in the Mallee, and yet only two of the birds 

 attacked passers-by — -one especially being very fierce. This one 

 had been robbed of its eggs in 1894, and the eggs were shown 

 me in the following season by the boy who had taken them from 

 this particular bird. Another magpie nesting in 1896 quite near 

 this one was not known to molest anybody. In the Orbost dis- 

 trict, East Gippsland, I have been daily attacked, during two 

 seasons (1 899-1 900), by two magpies, nests distant about a mile 

 from each other. While there are many other magpies nesting 

 near these two, they have not been known, so far as I can ascer- 

 tain, to attack anyone. In this case, as in the other, I know well 

 the boys who had previously robbed these two birds of their eggs. 

 These observations, I think, help to bear out the conclusion 

 arrived at by Mr. French, viz., that magpies develop their 

 ferocity and combativeness only after having been robbed of 

 their eggs. — Ed. E. Pescott, Orbost, Gippsland, 



South Australian Ornithological Association. — The 

 second annual meeting of this Association was held in Adelaide 

 on 1 st March, when the president, Dr. Morgan, occupied the 

 chair. The hon. secretary, Mr. J. W. Mellor, read the annual 

 report, which showed that a considerable amount of work had 

 been done during the year. The Association had greatly helped 

 the passing of a new Act of Parliament for the better protection 

 of the useful native birds ; while at the evening meetings many 

 interesting subjects had been discussed and specimens exhibited. 

 Mr. A. H. C. Zeitz was elected president, Mr. M. Symonds Clark 

 vice-president, and Mr. J. W. Mellor hon. treasurer and secretary 

 for the ensuing year. 



