CHAPTER XII. 
PENSILE BIRDS (continued). 
Australian Pensiles — The Yellow-throated Sericornis— Its habits — 
Singular position for its nest — Conscious security — The Rock Warbler— 
Shape and locality of its nest — The Singing Honey-Eater and its nest — 
The myall or weeping acacia — Various materials — The Painted Honey- 
eater, its habits and nest — The White-throated Honey-Eater and its 
habits — Its curious nest — Locality of the nest — The Swallow Dictum — 
Its song and beauty of its plumage — The nest, its materials, form, and posi- 
‘ tion — The Hammock Bird — Singular method of suspending the nest. 
Some very remarkable instances of pensile birds’ nests are 
found in Australia, and for many of them we are indebted to 
the careful and painful research of Mr. J. Gould, from whose 
skilful works on ornithology several illustrations have been, by 
permission, copied. 
A very curious instance is found in the nest of the Yellow- 
throated Sericornis (Sericornis citreogularis ), a rather pretty, but 
not a striking bird. The general colour is simple brown, and, 
as its name imparts, the throat is of a citron-yellow. The only 
remarkable point in the colour, beside the yellow throat, is a 
rather large patch of black, which envelopes the eye and passes 
down each side of the neck, nearly as far as the shoulders. It is 
the largest of its genus, and, although not rare, is seldom seen 
except by those who know where to look for it, as it is scarcely 
ever observed on the wing, but remains among the thick under- 
wood, flitting occasionally between the branches, but mostly 
remaining on the ground, where it pecks about in search of the 
insects on which it feeds. 
The reason for its mention in this work is the singular 
structure of its nest, which is described by Mr. Gould in the 
following words : — - 
