SCRUB ROBIN. * 
F. E. Wilson, writing about Oologists in the Mallee, recorded : “ One 
of the objects of our trip was to obtain eggs of this scarce species and we 
were fortunate in taking two clutches. Sometimes we found these birds in 
the open mallee timber, and at other times in dense thickets of acacia and 
turpentine bush. We usually found that each pair was isolated from its nearest 
neighbours, and always had to approach with great caution to observe them. 
When, however, the nest was approached they would run all around us, but 
always took good care to keep away from their nests. They were very local, 
and sometimes we found three or four of the previous season’s nests within 
short range of the new one. The nest was usually placed upon the ground 
at the base of a tree, or near a fallen log, but occasionally it was found built 
several inches off the ground on a heap of debris. One old nest seen was built 
on the top of the trunk of a fallen Murray pine. The nest is easily distinguished 
from that of other ground birds by the thick twigs arranged around the outside. 
The interiors of the nests examined were lined with fine twigs and rootlets, 
upon which the single egg was laid. The principal note used, which is generallv 
uttered when the bird is perched on some dead twig close to the ground, may 
be represented as ‘ Chu-chue,’ the second syllable being the louder. They 
feed mostly on the ground, and are able to run very swiftly when disturbed.” 
Mr. Tom Carter has written : “ Pale Scrub Robins occur in the scrub 
country at Broome Hill, and also a long way east of it (Mathews, ‘ Reference 
List ’ 1913, only gives mid- West Australia as its range in that State). A male 
bird in full moult was obtained at Gnowangerup on 13th February, 1919, 
the only one seen in the course of my trips. It is a very shy species, and 
easily overlooked.” 
When Sharpe prepared the volume in the Catalogue of the Birds in the 
British Museum dealing with these forms he separated a specimen f^om 
Shark’s Bay as a distinct species, Drymceodus pallidus, on account of its 
pale coloration. 
In my “ Reference List ” I separated the New South Wales and Victorian 
specimens under the name : 
Drymodes brunneopygia victories. 
Differs from D. h. brunneopygia in being paler below and in having the 
rump much less rufous,” the type being from Kow Plains, Victoria. 
This was continued in the 1913 “ List,” but wrongly, as the typical bird 
came from the Belts of the Murray and this form is the same as that from 
the Kow Plains. 
As Ashby has pointed out, it is the western South Australian form which 
requires the new name, being paler and more rufous. 
Consequently we may still admit three subspecies, but there may be more. 
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