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THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
Notes. — Usually in pairs or small flocks, frequenting the scrub-lands 
of the inland districts. In habits it closely resembles the Satin Bower-bird, 
but is of a shyer disposition. Often, however, birds that take up quarters 
near homesteads soon become very tame and make nuisances of them- 
selves in the orchards. It has a harsh, grating call, somewhat like the calls 
of the Satin and Regent Bower-birds. It is an excellent mimic, imitating 
perfectly the calls of other birds and bush sounds generally. It builds 
playgrounds or bowers, like other Bower-birds, but much larger, averaging 
about 3 feet in length, and decorated with an assortment of bleached 
bones, pieces of glass, and other bright objects. The bowers are usually 
built in a patch of scrub and are often pulled down and rebuilt time and 
again. Food : insects, seeds, and native fruits and berries. 
Nest. — A rather flat and shallow saucer-shaped structure, composed 
of thin dead sticks and twigs; lined with fine twigs, and sometimes with 
dried grasses. Generally placed in a leafy tree, at heights up to 30 feet 
from the ground. Usually the nest is a frail structure through which the 
eggs may be seen from beneath. 
Eggs. — Usually two, pale greenish-yellow, well marked with numer- 
ous lines of light to dark umber and blackish-brown, with others nearly 
black, and underlying lines of pale purplish-grey. Many eggs are beauti- 
fully marked, the tangled tracery of lines forming strange designs. 
Breeding-season : usually October to December. 
10, Western Bower-bird Chlamydera guttata Gould 
gut-ta-ta — L., guttatus , spotted. 
Distribution. — Mid-western, north-western, and central Australia. 
Notes . — Usually in pairs or small flocks, inhabiting the scrub-lands. 
It is similar in habits to the Spotted Bower-bird, though the bowers are 
smaller and less substantial structures ; the decorations include pieces of 
white or grey limestone, with the usual collection of bleached bones. Food: 
insects (chiefly beetles), seeds, and native fruits and berries. 
Nest. — A frail, saucer-shaped structure, similar in construction to that 
of the Spotted Bower-bird, and usually placed in a small or large tree, 
at heights up to 20 feet or more from the ground. 
Eggs . — Usually two, pale greenish-grey, similarly marked with a 
tangled network of lines like those of the Spotted Bower-bird. Breeding- 
season : September or October to December, sometimes as late as 
February. 
11. Fawn-breasted Bower-bird Chlamydera cerviniventris Gould 
cer-vi-ni-veri -tris — L., cervinus, coloured like a stag; L., venter , belly. 
Distribution. — Northern Queensland (Cape York Peninsula, on the 
eastern side of the coastal range) ; also occurs in New Guinea and the 
Louisiade Archipelago. 
Notes. — Usually in pairs or small flocks, frequenting the scrub, open 
forest, and mangroves. It is a shy species, more often heard than seen. 
