414 The American Naturalist. [May, 
gives his fancy full swing; he brings hither to garnish it every 
bright article he can discover, and lays a considerable territory 
under tribute to minister to his beloved habit, and so prodigal 
is he of his acquired treasures that the approaches to his 
singular abode are strewn with spoils. Nothing seems to come 
amiss, hence he is as eager to possess himself of old bones, 
shells, stones, and all kinds of miscellanea, as bits of metal, 
flowers, leaves, dropped feathers, etc., although as a rule, glit- 
tering objects prevail, obviously collected for decorative pur- 
poses. It is apparent that with so much evidence in plain 
sight, the little builder could not well conceal his structure, 
nor indeed was it the probable intention to do so; it was far 
easier to hide the real nest, and this has been done so effectu- 
ally that the most persevering efforts towards discovery have 
gone unrewarded. It is not likely, however, that arbor and 
nest are very far apart. 
The Chlamydera cerviniventris or Fawn-breasted Bower-bird 
is enough like the common female robin of this country 
to be mistaken for her. The bird is very plain throughout, 
the nearest approach to brightness, and that but slight, being 
on the breast and abdomen, where a brownish-yellow tinge 
occurs. The buff throat is streaked with dull yellow. The 
upper parts are uniformly drab or slate. It israther longer than 
our robin—about twelve inches—with tail and wings extended 
more than strict proportions would permit. The bill is short 
and black, eyes are dark, legs and feet black. The male is 
said to sing sweetly, thus adding another accomplishment to 
his faculty of pleasing his mate as well as himself. 
Another Bower-bird of New Guinea is the Gardener—Am- 
blyornis inornatus—who builds his hut or arbor of a triangular 
shape, set back against the trunk of a tree ; in front he scatters 
the usual assortment of shining, smooth, and curious objects 
together with perishable substances, such as small plants, 
flowers, insects, fruit and fungi, removing them carefully when 
they become offensive or timeworn. ‘This little virtuoso is 
plain in color, a yellowish-red predominating, and in size and 
general appearance not unlike a large Brown Thrasher. He 
seems always busy and, indeed, must be, for the nature of his 
4 
