■ rt** 1 
ORANGE-WINGED TREERUNNER. 
Gould’s notes are brief: “ New South Wales is the true habitat of this 
species, over nearly every part of which it is rather plentifully distributed. I 
generally observed it in small companies of from four to eight in number, running 
over the branches of the trees with the greatest facility, and assuming every 
possible variety of position, often, like the Nuthatch, traversing the boles of 
the trees with its head downwards. During its flight, which is quick and darting, 
the red mark on the wing shows very conspicuously ; its powers of flight are, 
however, seldom employed, further than to enable it to pass from one tree to 
another.” 
Mr. Thos. P. Austin has written me from Cobbora, New South Wales: 
“ Sparingly dispersed throughout the district, found both in the open forests 
and scrubs. Excepting when breeding, they are to be seen in small flocks of 
four to a dozen birds, flying from tree to tree which they thoroughly search for 
their insect food. I notice that some writers state that they only work with 
their heads downwards, this is a greatly mistaken idea; my experiences are 
that they more often work upwards than downwards. Seldom are they at 
rest, hopping about boughs and trunks of trees the whole day, often uttering 
their plaintive little notes. Only while collecting nesting material have I seen 
them upon the ground. Seldom if ever are they found in smooth barked trees, 
as they obtain their food supply from crevices in rough bark or decaying wood 
or dead trees. The nest is a marvel of neatness, usually placed in a perpendicular 
fork of a dead branch or a rough barked living tree, and it would invariably 
escape notice if the birds did not betray its situation. Cup-shaped, composed 
of wool, fin, spiders’ webs, cocoons, etc., outwardly ornamented with small 
strips of greenish-grey bark, all placed close together somewhat like shingles 
on the roof of a building. The clutch is usually three and they breed from early 
in October till the end of the year, in the latter case probably a second brood. 
It is not unusual to meet with more than one pan of birds assisting in the 
construction of a nest. They have a habit of building a nest, then without 
laying, pull it to pieces bit by bit, and rebuild it elsewhere, only to do the same 
again. When a bird is sitting the other bird feeds it upon the nest.” 
Mr. F. E. Howe has sent me : “ In the tall timber this useful bird is at home, 
and here they are observed to work in small flocks of from four to eight. They 
operate together beautifully, and on alighting in a tree disperse to all parts of 
it and working downwards and under the limb, uttering soft twittering notes 
the while. A call slightly different seems to be the signal for departure and 
off they go in an undulating flight one after another. On November 1st a pair 
had just started to build in the dead fork of a living tree. Both were busily 
engaged in this task and made visits to the site about every minute. To gather 
the necessary cobwebs they would fly to the bottom of the tree and work round 
VOL. XI. 
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