A SIMPLE METHOD OF PREPARING CRANIA. 

 By HEBER A. LONGMAN, Director, Queensland Museum. 



Owing to the prevalence in Brisbane of the cosmopolitan little Brown Ant, Pheidole megacephala, 

 Fabr., a convenient and expeditious method of preparing osteological specimens is available, especially 

 in the warmer months. These ants have a predilection for animal tissue, and apparently appreciate 

 the old adage that the nearer to the bone the sweeter is the meat. They are present in such numbers 

 that their services can be utilised on quite a large scale when specimens are required. Should it be 

 desired to prepare the skull of a small mammal, or even a complete skeleton, the specimen should 

 first be boiled until the meat is soft enough for the major portion to be readily removed by hand or 

 by forceps and scalpel. The specimen should then be placed on a board under a suitable wire-cover 

 to prevent depredations by wandering cats or rodents, and left on the ground in the vicinity of a nest 

 of ants — there is no difficulty in finding nests in Brisbane suburbs. The ants work best in the dark, 

 when they simply swarm over the bones. The amount of material they remove in twenty-four hours 

 is surprising. 



This process has the advantage of leaving uninjured delicate or filamentous processes. The 

 interstices and foramina are thoroughly cleaned out and the bones are left perfectly clean. Exposure 

 to sunlight will subsequently dry and bleach them. By this method the skull of a small mammal, a 

 bird, or a fish, can be made available for identification within forty-eight hours, and the obnoxious 

 and lengthy process of maceration is rendered unnecessary. It almost rivals the trypsin process as 

 described in the " Museum Journal " for February, igiy, by Miss K. F. Lander. 



The only essential is to boil the specimens in order to prevent the meat from mummifying and 

 becoming too hard, and in the case of large crania, from which a considerable amount of meat has 

 to be removed, another boiling on the second day may be of advantage. 



A large number of mammalian, reptilian and other crania have been prepared for the Queensland 

 Museum by this simple method. 



AVIARY NOTES ON THE PECTORAL RAIL, HYPOTAEN1DIA PH1L1PPENSJS, L. 



By T. C. MARSHALL. 



On the 28th of December, 1917, whilst out catching King Quail, I had the good fortune to meet with 

 this interesting bird at Harrisville. A large patch of oats was being cut at the time, and the noise 

 of the reaping-machine frightened out a pair of rails, which flew away across the creek. Immediately 

 after their departure I heard the peculiar " slate-pencil clack " of young birds from several directions, 

 and after a little while succeeded in locating a little chap, which I chased out on to the ploughed ground, 

 and quickly ran it down. In this way I managed to catch five, but though others were heard in the 

 vicinity, I could not see them. 



They were curious little chaps, not unlike day-old black orpington chicks, exi ept that their legs 

 and bills were much stouter and stronger. I managed to get them all safely to Brisbane, but two 

 died a few days later. In less than a week the remaining three had grown fully twice as large as 

 when first obtained. About the 20th of January, 1918, a few whitish barred feathers appeared ; the 

 black down had turned to a dirty brown, and appeared as though there were barely enough of it to 

 cover the bird. On the 24th of January the buff band of the adults was plainly visible on all three 

 birds, and feathers were rapidly taking the place of the down. About the end of the month they 

 were perfect birds, strutting about the aviary and giving the peculiar jerk of the tail, while uttering 

 their loud " clack " at regular intervals. 



