THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
many as 40 birds together ; they come to feed on the berries of the Exocarpus. 
Bnsh fires necessarily destroy much of the food of fruit-eating birds, and this 
may be one reason for their seeking food in cultivated areas. The Hill Crow- 
Shrike filches from the apple orchard, and leaves the trace of his presence 
in varying degrees of mischief. Sometimes only a puncture is made on the 
rind of the apple ; generally a large piece of the fruit is scooped out ; rarely 
is the whole apple eaten excepting the core. When these Crow-Shrikes are 
flying overhead the white basal portions of the inner webs of the primaries 
are very conspicuous, and may well serve as marks whereby they can be 
recognised by others on the ground.” 
H. Stuart Dove has recorded : “A friend who spends a great deal of time 
on the mountain plateaux of our island tells me that in a certain valley at 
high altitude it is the custom of the large £ Black Jay ’ ( Strepera arguta ) to 
flock in the spring of the year in order to feed upon the native berries (Astro- 
loma pinifolium and others) which are there in profusion. At this time the 
usually noisy Strepera is very silent, and one does not know the birds are there 
until right in amongst them. Even then they do not care about moving far, 
and when forced to fly often do so in silence, although at other times the 
‘ kling-klang ’ notes (from which the species derived its name) are very much 
in evidence. My friend has the idea that the assembly is partly for the 
purpose of choosing mates for the ensuing season, but I think this is not so ; 
the probability is that this fine bird once mated, retains his partner for life. 
It has struck me that there may be some narcotic quality in the berries con- 
sumed at this period, which may account for the comparative sluggishness 
of this usually very alert species.” 
Miss Fletcher has noted : “ During the autumn and winter of 1905 the 
Hill Crow-Shrikes came to this district (Cleveland) and remained until nearly 
springtime. They were certainly a great addition to our surroundings, and 
their merry ‘ clinking 5 calls added a jovial tone to this our dreariest season.” 
Mr. Tom Carter’s notes read : “ In your 1912 £ Reference List ’ Strepera 
plumbea is given as occurring generally through West Australia. It is mostly 
a South-western bird, being most numerous in the heavily timbered coastal 
districts of the extreme South-west. Its northern coastal limit appears to 
be about the River Murchison, common at Kellerberin and eastwards. In 
the dense Jarrah, Red Gum, and Karri forests extending along the Vasse, 
Margaret, Blackwood and Warren Rivers, the piping notes of these birds 
become very monotonous as the forests resound with them. Besides their 
usual note they have another, softer and more melodious, which is generally 
considered to foretell rain or rough weather by the residents. The local 
names of this species through the South-west is Squeaker, the aboriginal 
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