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THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
PLATE XV 
BIRDS OF THE BLOSSOMS AND OUTER FOLIAGE 
1- Yellow-breasted Sunbird Cyrtostomus frenatus S. Muller 
— 1A. Female 
Cyr-to-stom-us — Gk, cyrtos ( kurtos ), curved; Gk, stoma , mouth: fren-a- 
tus — L., frenatus , bridled. 
Distribution. — North-eastern Queensland to as far south as Yeppoon; 
also occurs in the Celebes, New Guinea, Admiralty Islands, and Solomon 
Islands. 
Notes. — Usually in pairs, flitting about the flowering trees and shrubs 
seeking insects and nectar, occasionally darting out to capture an insect on 
the wing; it has the true humming-bird habit of hovering near flowers. 
As it flits from flower to flower it utters a note like “Tsee-tsee,” while 
its song is a pretty, tremulous warble. 
Nest. — A long, oval-shaped structure with a tail-piece, the side en- 
trance being protected by a hood. Composed of pieces of bark, bark- 
fibre, dried grasses, rootlets, and dead leaves, held together with cobwebs ; 
lined with fine grasses and plant down. Frequently suspended from a twig 
of a small bush, often close to the ground and sometimes fastened to sus- 
pended pieces of rope or other suitable material hanging about houses, 
especially verandas. 
Eggs. — Two or three, pale greenish-grey, speckled and mottled nearly 
all over, particularly at the larger end, with umber markings. Breeding- 
season : September to January or February. 
2. Grey-backed Silver-eye Zosterops halmaturina A. G. Campbell 
Zos-teZ-ops — Gk, zoster, belt; Gk, ops , face: halmaturina , so called from 
L., halmaturus = kangaroo = Kangaroo Island. 
Distribution. — New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and 
Tasmania; also occurs in New Zealand and Chatham Island. 
Notes. — Usually in pairs or flocks, according to the season of the 
year. Habits similar to those of the better-known Grey-breasted Silver- 
eye. 
Nest. — A small, cup-shaped structure, composed of fine grasses, 
horse-hair, and other materials, well matted and fastened together with 
cobwebs and spiders’ cocoons ; lined with fine grasses and sometimes with 
horse-hair. Usually placed in a horizontal fork of a bush or small tree, 
at heights up to 15 feet from the ground. 
Eggs. — Three to four, pale bluish-green. Breeding-season: Sep- 
tember to January or February. 
