THE WOMBAT. 43 



The first nest I recollect finding was built in a briar-bush on 

 the banks of Lake Connewarre. That was in 1888, and since 

 then I have found the birds breeding in several places, mainly 

 at Queenscliff Road and Spring Creek. The nest is much 

 Jess in size than that of the " Wagtail," but is composed of 

 -similar materials. Its most striking feature is what is known 

 as the tail, an appendage composed of similar material with 

 the nest itself, and sometimes three or four inches long. The 

 •use of it is not obvious, though it has been suggested that it 

 acts as a means for carrying off moisture. It would seem to 

 be built neither before nor after, but simultaneously with the 

 rest of the nest. Curiously enough all the nests of this species 

 I have found in the ti-tree round Lake Victoria have been 

 without this tail, so the practice of adding it would seem not 

 to be universal. The eggs are usually three in number. In 

 size they are about half as large as those of the wagtail, dull 

 -whitish yellow in ground, with a ring of lilac purple and 

 brown speckles near the larger end. The breeding season is 

 from October to January inclusive. The nest is always placed 

 on a thin twig, occasionally where there is a horizontal fork. 

 Gum saplings are most favoured. At the Queenscliff Road 

 the honeysuckle trees are used a good deal by the birds. A 

 favourite site for the nest is among the dead leafy twigs of a 

 fallen gum-tree. In 1891, when the spring was stormy, the 

 •birds built very often in the acacia hedges. The Rufous-fronted 

 Fantail (Rhipidura rufifrons) is an occasional visitor only. 

 When the White-shafted Fantails appear at Easter-timein the 

 town, they generally bring with them some representatives of 

 this species. It is a bird somewhat larger than its near relation, 

 and may be known by the reddish feathers which it has at the 

 base of the tail. It does not breed in this district. A nest 

 taken in the Dandenong Ranges in 1890 was very like that of 

 the White shafted Fantail. It contained three eggs ; ground- 

 colour creamy-white, with a zone of red-brown markings round 

 the middle. I saw one of these birds near Ocean Grove in 

 August, 1893. Sometimes they are comparatively common, 

 but few have been seen in the district of late years. 



The Restless Flycatcher (Seisura inquieta) is not so 

 common as either of the before-mentioned species. It closely 

 resembles in colour and habits the Black and White Fantail, 

 but may be easily distinguished on near approach by its pure 

 white throat. A pair of these birds inhabit the vicinity of the 

 pond in the Botanical Gardens all the year round. They 

 are not rare at Queenscliff Road, and I have taken the nest 

 at Spring Creek. The bird has a habit of poising in the air 

 a foot or so from the ground, with its wings rapidly vibrating, 

 and a noise like the sharpening of a saw proceeding from its 

 throat. The breeding season is from late September till 

 December, during which time two broods are reared. Mosses 



