YELLOW-BILLED KINGFISHER. 
Gould’s full account reads : “ |Tliis species might easily be mistaken 
for the Syma torotoro ; but there can be little doubt of its being distinct and 
new to science; its lesser size, less brilliant colouring, the yellow instead of 
orange hue of the biU, and the smaller size of the serrations of the mandibles, 
are some of the characters by which it may be distinguished from the New 
Guinea species. It was in that rich district the peninsula of Cape York, 
which appears to have a fauna peculiar to itself, that the present bird was 
first procured ; the following notes by Mr. Macgillivray comprise all the 
information I have been able to obtain respecting it : “ The Podittif as 
it is called by the aborigines, appears to be a rare bird ; for although it was 
much sought for, not more than four or five examples were obtained during 
our stay. Like the Tanysiptera sylvia, it is an inhabitant of the brushes, 
while the 8. torotoro of New Guinea is a mangrove bird. I myself saw it 
ahve only once, in a belt of tall trees, thick underwood, and clumps of the 
Seaforthia palm fringing a small stream about three miles from the sea. 
Attracted by the call of the bird, which was recognised by the accompanying 
natives as that of the much-prized Poditti, three or four of us remained for 
about ten minutes almost rmder the very tree in which it was perched, intently 
looking out for the chance of a shot, before I discovered it on a bare transverse 
branch, so high up as scarcely to be within range of small shot ; however, 
it fell, but our work was only half over, as the wounded bird eluded our search 
for a long time ; at length one of our sable allies — ^his eyes brightened, I dare 
say, by visions of a promised axe — found it lying dead in a corner, to which 
it had retreated. The more intelligent natives whom I questioned separately 
agreed in stating that its mode of nidification is similar to that of the Tanysiptera 
Sylvia, and that, like that species, it lays several white eggs.” 
The next note I have is that written by Macgillivray (the younger), 
but other collectors have met with the bird at Cape York. 
In the British Museum Collection are some skins recorded as from Cape 
York by the untruthful Cockerell, which seem to have come from that locahty, 
and North has recorded the fact that Thorpe (Cockerell’s companion) told 
him he collected several at Cape York. Recently Etheridge has vouched for 
Thorpe’s veracity. 
Macgillivray wrote {Emu, Vol. XIII., p. 159, 1914) : “ At Ca|)e York 
Mr. M‘Lennan’s first note on the YeUow-biUed Kingfisher was made on 2nd 
December, 1910: 8yma flavirostris ior the first time; it is a beautiful 
bird. Saw another later in the day and heard it calling ; it has a mournful 
caU, very difficult to locate. The nest is usually in a termite’s nest in a tree 
in scrub or in open forest, just at the edge of the scrub. They call only in 
the breeding-season, and the call is almost continual when there is a nest. 
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