﻿324 
  THE 
  ZOOLOGIST. 
  

  

  Tasmania 
  it 
  is 
  becoming 
  very 
  scarce, 
  owing 
  chiefly, 
  I 
  think, 
  

   to 
  the 
  indiscriminate 
  burning 
  of 
  scrub. 
  

  

  To 
  most 
  Tasmanians 
  this 
  bird 
  is 
  familiarly 
  known 
  as 
  the 
  

   " 
  "Whistling 
  Dick," 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  its 
  noisiness 
  and 
  general 
  cheer- 
  

   fulness. 
  In 
  some 
  districts 
  this 
  Shrike 
  Thrush 
  is 
  fairly 
  plentiful. 
  

   It 
  always 
  makes 
  its 
  presence 
  known, 
  long 
  before 
  it 
  can 
  be 
  seen, 
  

   with 
  its 
  loud 
  and 
  cheerful 
  whistling 
  notes. 
  The 
  denser 
  portions 
  

   of 
  the 
  scrub 
  are 
  mostly 
  favoured 
  by 
  this 
  bird 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  rarely 
  seen 
  

   in 
  the 
  open, 
  except 
  when 
  passing 
  across 
  a 
  cleared 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  

   forest 
  to 
  get 
  into 
  the 
  scrub 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  side. 
  Caterpillars 
  and 
  

   insects 
  of 
  divers 
  kinds, 
  especially 
  those 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  under 
  the 
  

   bark 
  of 
  trees, 
  constitute 
  its 
  principal 
  food. 
  On 
  account 
  of 
  its 
  

   powerful 
  bill, 
  it 
  is 
  enabled 
  with 
  ease 
  to 
  strip 
  the 
  loose 
  bark 
  from 
  

   the 
  limbs 
  and 
  search 
  out 
  its 
  prey. 
  In 
  those 
  districts 
  in 
  which 
  

   it 
  is 
  not 
  disturbed 
  by 
  the 
  sportsman's 
  gun, 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  at 
  all 
  shy, 
  

   allowing 
  one 
  to 
  approach 
  to 
  within 
  reasonable 
  distance 
  for 
  the 
  

   purpose 
  of 
  watching 
  it 
  at 
  work. 
  Occasionally 
  individual 
  birds 
  

   may 
  be 
  seen 
  in 
  cleared 
  portions, 
  and 
  feeding 
  round 
  settlers' 
  homes. 
  

  

  The 
  Small-billed 
  Cuckoo 
  Shrike 
  (Graucalus 
  melanops 
  subsp. 
  

   jmrvirostris) 
  , 
  in 
  the 
  family 
  Campopliagida, 
  next 
  deserves 
  attention. 
  

   This 
  bird 
  is 
  found 
  on 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  islands 
  in 
  Bass 
  Strait 
  in 
  

   addition 
  to 
  Tasmania. 
  It 
  differs 
  from 
  C. 
  melanops 
  in 
  having 
  the 
  

   bill 
  slightly 
  smaller, 
  and 
  the 
  grey 
  upper 
  surface 
  slightly 
  darker. 
  

   The 
  common 
  vernacular 
  name 
  of 
  this 
  bird 
  is 
  "Summer 
  Bird." 
  

   Why 
  it 
  goes 
  by 
  this 
  name 
  I 
  know 
  not, 
  as 
  it 
  does 
  not 
  leave 
  the 
  

   island 
  altogether 
  in 
  the 
  winter. 
  There 
  are 
  many 
  districts 
  to 
  

   which 
  it 
  is 
  only 
  a 
  summer 
  visitor, 
  disappearing 
  completely 
  as 
  

   soon 
  as 
  the 
  first 
  frost 
  whitens 
  the 
  ground. 
  It 
  is 
  only 
  within 
  the 
  

   last 
  few 
  years 
  that 
  it 
  has 
  appeared 
  round 
  Launceston 
  in 
  the 
  

   winter. 
  During 
  June, 
  1899 
  (mid-winter), 
  I 
  came 
  across 
  an 
  un- 
  

   usually 
  large 
  flock, 
  consisting 
  of 
  twenty 
  birds, 
  feeding 
  on 
  the 
  

   ground 
  in 
  the 
  bush 
  just 
  outside 
  Launceston. 
  As 
  there 
  are 
  

   several 
  districts 
  in 
  Tasmania 
  much 
  warmer 
  in 
  winter 
  than 
  

   others, 
  the 
  " 
  Summer 
  Bird 
  " 
  congregates 
  there 
  until 
  spring 
  

   comes 
  round 
  again, 
  when 
  it 
  returns 
  to 
  its 
  former 
  haunts. 
  Parts 
  

   of 
  the 
  east 
  coast 
  and 
  the 
  north-west 
  corner 
  of 
  the 
  island 
  are 
  its 
  

   favourite 
  winter 
  resorts. 
  During 
  the 
  breeding 
  season, 
  which 
  

   lasts 
  from 
  October 
  to 
  December, 
  it 
  generally 
  goes 
  in 
  pairs; 
  at 
  

   other 
  times 
  small 
  flocks 
  of 
  from 
  six 
  to 
  ten 
  are 
  usually 
  to 
  be 
  

  

  