oil ilu Coach- Whip Bird.



3 7



the warm weather, supposing it to be a healthy specimen, it too

would have become developed in body and mind ; and the

comical way in which a good male suddenly pauses in the midst

of his many affairs, lifts up his head, opens his mouth, blows his

whistle, cracks his whip, and whacks his beast, would have

given huge delight to thousands of young people (for he is not

shy nor easily abashed)—and to many an old one too.


The Coach-whip Bird is mainly insectivorous, and obtains

most of its food on the ground. I was informed that, on the

voyage over, a little scraped raw meat was regularly given to my

bird ; but probably in captivity this species is better without it

when good insectivorous food is obtainable ; however, a little

scraped cooked meat (beef or mutton) is often of great value to a

bird of this kind. I noticed that my Whip Bird had a little

weakness for hunting any lame duck that might chance to be in

the aviary ; and I suspect that, in the wild state, it is not averse

to helping itself to a nestling, a mouse, and the like, when it

happens to light upon one in the bush. It is not a bird I should

care to trust in an aviary of small finches, or even with breeding

quails—the chicks would “mysteriously disappear,” I expect.


My Whip Bird was first heard to utter his call, and that

pretty frequently, on June 16, three weeks after arrival, in the

early morning before we were up ; and, afterwards, it was so

commonly repeated as to cease to attract especial attention;

although it was always interesting to watch the bird while

uttering it—and of great interest to my neighbours on one side

who regarded him as a curiosity, but a cause of much grumbling

on the part of others who were systematically unamiable. His

favourite “ coach road ” was a bare pole or perch, some yards

long, and fixed up some 8ft. above the ground. My note runs:—

“ He bustles about and then stops, raises head rather high,

■opens his mouth, gives a whistle (sometimes high, sometimes

low), then a sudden shake or jerk of the head and out comes the

crack.” The preliminary whistle would be prolonged for the

space of a good breath before the crack came, and usually was

on a moderately high note, but not infrequently on a much lower

one ; the mouth would be opened as wide as by a fledgeling

Thrush asking for food. There were occasional curious and

pleasing variations to the usual calls.



