Order Passeri formes, Family Pridnopidae Genus Colluricinrla. L99 



about the same spot. They are quiet and retiring in their 

 habits, and were it not for their pretty whistle, they would 

 often be missed. 



Flight. — Undulating and not very swift — they seldom do 

 more than fly from tree to tree, or from tree to ground. 



Song. — A melodious whistle, very clear and loud. 11 

 can hardly be called a song, as it co'nsists generally of only 

 six or seven notes. A common sequence is three notes 

 whistled slowly, then two lower pitched uttered quickly, end- 

 ing with a final high pitched note. The young for some time 

 after leaving the nest utter a single mournful "squark." 



Food. — Entirely animal, consisting of insects of all 

 orders, spiders, and worms. Much of the food is taken upon 

 the ground, where they can often be seen quietly scratching 

 amongst the dead leaves and fallen bark, etc. 



Nest.— The nest is built in a variety of situations, such 

 /as the top of an old stump, the bole of a mistletoe, a thick 

 clump of leaves, on the top of an old babbler's (Poiixrtosfomus) 

 nest, niches in cliffs, and nests have been found near houses 

 on. a window sill, and in an old billycan in a shed. The nest 

 is generally not more than ten feet from the ground, often 

 within reach of the hand, but they occasionally build much 

 higher — a pair is at present building in a pine tree in the park 

 lands at a height of 30 feet. The building material is gene- 

 rally strips of bark throughout, the lining strips being finer 

 and nicely smoothed down. Sometimes grass is used for a 

 lining; when near habitation, pieces of waste paper, rags, 

 and string are largely used. They are very particular about 

 the nest being touched or even looked at. It is often deser- 

 ted and sometimes pulled to pieces after such an occurrence. 

 The breeding season extends from the middle of August to 

 the end of November, two broods being reared in the season. 

 Young have been known to be hatched as early as June. 



Eggs. — Usually three in number, occasionally four, and 

 rarely only two. The ground colour of the eggs is white, 

 sometimes with a faint tinge of cream, the spots are of a very 

 dark brown to purplish black colour; they are large and 

 sparsely distributed, sometimes forming an irregular zone at 

 the larger end; they are irregular in shape, but in some "-;gs 

 have a tendency to become longitudinally streaks, and occa- 

 sionally zig-zag lines are seen, 



