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Mr. D. Seth-Smith,



of these home, so tried to conceive some method of capturing

them. The best method I could think of was by means of the

ordinary bird-catchers’ clap-nets, and as I found it impossible to

purchase these in Sydney I set to work to rig up a pair with some

netting I was able to buy. One day I discovered several dead

specimens of this bird, and ascertained that poisoned grain had

been laid down for the Sparrows, and the “Pee-wees” had taken

this and succumbed to its effects. However there were plenty

more left, and a couple of the dead birds, propped up with sticks,

made capital decoys.


One evening, as soon as the visitors had left the Gardens,

I set my nets with the decoys in position, and within five minutes

two birds came flying overhead and pitched right in the nets

close to the decoys. I pulled the string and secured one bird;

the other, flying straight upwards, managed to clear the nets.

This was encouraging, but I soon found that the nets Iliad made

were rather too heavy, and as these birds have a habit of jump¬

ing vertically into the air when disturbed, instead of flying low,

they generally managed to clear the nets before they could be

pulled over. I secured two birds that evening, and the following

day had to leave Sydney on a trip to Brisbane, so my catching

was postponed for the time being.


Curiously enough, on my return, ten days later, the Pee-

wees had departed except for an occasional single bird or a pair.

Probably they are to a certain extent migratory, and I had

struck a number of migrants on the first occasion. I sub¬

sequently captured two more, four being my total catch.


The introduced Indian Mynah is as common here as in

Melbourne, and every afternoon a small flock would appear, but

not being native birds they did not interest me particularly.


Quite the most charming birds in the Gardens were the

Blue Wrens, which were always present. On several occasions

I saw a female feeding young birds close to the Secretary’s

Office, and the gorgeous little males were to be seen hopping

about on the grass, never far from a clump of bushes, at almost

any time.


White-eyes fZosterops ccerulescensj were the commonest of

the native birds met with in the Sydney Zoo., and their plaintive



