TAWNY FROGMOUTH. 
disturbed from sleep the birds, as a rule, do not fly very far. The colouring 
of this species varies very much in all localities (according to my experience) 
from a rich rufous shade on parts, or the whole, of the mantle and underparts, 
to a deep blackish-grey, and seems to be irrespective of sex. The general nature 
of the plumage is distinctly protective, of which these birds seem to be aware, 
as well as other species. Thus, while walking through one of my Broome Hill 
paddocks, my attention was attracted by what seemed to be a strip of dry bark 
hanging up in the small upper branches (which are usually covered with quite 
smooth green bark) of a York gum-tree. As fallen bark is not usually seen in 
such a place, but always occurs on lower limbs, I used my binoculars and found 
that the object was a fine Tawny Frogmouth, holding itself in a strained position, 
with feathers compressed and the body (apparently) very much elongated. 
Most probably the bird had previously been disturbed by me in the course of 
my walk, and had, unnoticed by me, alighted in the tree, and taken up this 
attitude at my approach, but had chosen a bad position for its pose. Respecting 
the much-argued point as to whether Ninox hoobook or Podargus utters the 
More-pork call, I cannot say definitely, but feel sine that besides the ‘ Oom, 
oom ’ call of the Frogmouth, it has another, which can only be described as 
‘ More-pork,’ whereas the Owl’s cry more resembles Boo-book or Boo-buk. 
Distance and atmospheric conditions, it is well known, modulate sounds. In 
favour of this argument I may state that while residing at Point Cloates two 
Queenslanders were engaged by me to sink a well at a spot about thirty miles 
inland, where I had discovered a nice creek fringed with some white gum-trees, 
Casuarina, etc. About a fortnight afterwards I rode out to see how the work 
was progressing, and at the men’s camp noticed a fine specimen (dead) of 
Podargus. Upon enquiring how the bird came to be there, one of the men said 
that for many nights a More Pork used to come to the camp and disturb 
the sleep of his mate and himself by its Morepork, so the previous night 
(there being a good moon) he had sat up with his gun and shot the bird as it 
perched, uttering its cry, on its usual place, the windlass over the weU-shaft; 
Knowing I collected birds he had kept the specimen, expecting me to visit their 
work. As I knew that the body would not keep until I returned home, I there- 
upon skinned it, and opening out its gizzard found it crammed full, with large 
centipedes, to eat which was no doubt the reason of the bird visiting the camp, 
as centipedes are always disturbed in numbers and brought to the surface at 
such work as well-sinldng. When residing at Broome Hill, on many moon- 
light nights I went out with my gun in order to try and shoot the bird uttering 
More-Pork, but never succeeded in doing so, although several times the bird 
was uttering its cry in a tree (always high up among the green leaves) over my 
head, and when it did fiy away, it was either from the further side of the tree. 
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