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THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
PLATE XVII 
BIRDS OF THE TREE-TRUNKS AND BRANCHES 
1. Orange- winged Sittella Neositta chrysoptera Latham 
Ne-o-sitt'-a — Gk, neos, new; Gk, sitte, woodpecker: chrys-op’-ter-a — Gk, 
chrysos, golden ; Gk, pteron, wing. 
Distribution. — Southern Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria. 
Notes . — Also called Tree-runner, Nuthatch, Barkpecker, and Wood- 
pecker. Usually in small flocks, frequenting both open forests and scrubs. 
It is very active, running over the branches and down the trunks of trees 
with the greatest ease, seeking insect-life in the crevices of the bark. While 
feeding, and when in flight from tree to tree, it utters soft twittering notes. 
Its flight is undulatory, and it is then that the orange markings on the 
wings are seen. The head of the female is black. 
Nest . — A well-built, cup-shaped structure, composed chiefly of spiders’ 
webs and cocoons, neatly interwoven, and decorated on the outside with 
small pieces of bark fastened on like shingles, forming a perfect imitation 
of the bark of the tree in which it is built. Placed in an upright forked 
limb of a dead tree at heights up to 50 feet or more from the ground. 
Eggs. — Usually three, very variable ; a typical clutch is greyish-white, 
spotted and blotched all over, particularly at the larger end, with dark 
olive and slate markings. Breeding-season: August to January. 
2. Black-capped Sittella Neositta pileata Gould — 2 A. Female 
pi-le-a-ta — L., pileatus , capped. 
Distribution. — Interior of Victoria, South Australia, New South 
Wales, and south and mid-western Australia. 
Notes. — Has the same vernacular names as the Orange-winged Sit- 
tella. Usually in small flocks, frequenting alike heavily timbered country, 
open forests, and scrubs. Habits similar to the Orange-winged Sittella. 
Nest. — Similar to that of the Orange-winged Sittella. 
Eggs. — Similar to those of the Orange-winged Sittella. 
3. Striated Sittella Neositta striata Gould — 3A. Female 
stri-a-ta — L., striatus, striped. 
Distribution. — Northern Queensland, from Cape York southwards 
to Inkerman. 
Notes. — Usually in small flocks in forest country. Probably the most 
active of the Sittellas. 
