THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
that one or other of the birds would presently cross the road we waited for a 
glimpse of them. Presently the male was seen poking about near the edge 
of the scrub, but the bird seeing us became agitated and afraid to venture 
across the open. Several times he gave the usual note and each time was 
answered by the female. Occasionally he gave the opening ‘ swish-like 5 
note that precedes the crack and stopped. In this case no response came 
from the female. Suddenly we were startled by the male producing an exact 
imitation of the female call after his own note and a second later the mate 
answered. Three or four times in succession the male gave this call and we 
distinctly saw the beak open and shut and the throat move on each occasion. 
Slowly the sprightly form with crest erect edged away through the scrub, and 
growing bolder as the dividing distance became greater, finally flitted across 
the road and joined its mate, some twenty yards away.” 
Mr. F. E. Howe’s notes read : “ Is plentiful at Ferntree Gully, Victoria. 
They are very local and can be seen in a certain spot at any time of the year. 
One who has heard the call will never forget it. The whip-like note is uttered 
by the male alone, and is nearly always answered by a double ‘ wee- wit ’ of the 
female. This form is a fairly early breeder, and rears two broods, one in 
September or October, and the other in December or January. The nest, 
which is very like that of a Thickhead, only much larger, is generally placed 
in wire-grass or in the native hops ( Goodenia ovata ) and about four feet from 
the ground. When feeding they utter a peculiar chuckling note.” 
Mr. L. G. Chandler later wrote: “ The clear ringing notes of the Psophodes 
and the sweet ‘ guinea-a-week ’ call of the Pycnoptilus are pleasant sounds to 
the bird lover’s ears. The thickly timbered gullies with an undergrowth of 
wire and sword-grass are the favourite resort of both these species and they 
appear to be very local. When a new nest of P. olivaceus is found, you often 
find the previous season’s nest not far away. A tangle of wire-grass is the 
favoured situation for a nest, and it is rarely placed more than thirty feet from 
water. The birds are ground feeders, and scratch amongst the decaying debris 
for their food. When working over the ground both sexes occasionally utter 
low chuckling notes, apparently evincing satisfaction at some find. The call 
of the male sounding something like the swish and crack of a whip, is followed 
on nearly every occasion by the responding call ‘ whip-ee ’ of the female. 
This response from the female follows so quickly on her mate’s call, that many 
people think both notes originate from the throat of one bird. As I have 
written in a previous note, the male does give both calls sometimes, but then I 
think it is only given under the influence of agitation. When a nest is found 
containing young, the parents fly around erecting and flattening their crests 
and uttering notes of anxiety and fear. The usual note then is a repetition 
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