THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
nest are unlike those of the Brush Cuckoo from Southern Australia, and are 
like those described as the eggs of the Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo. The 
Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo is, however, an inhabitant of the tropical scrub, 
and not of the mangrove or tea-tree swamps where this Honey-eater nests. 
In these swamps, however, the Brush Cuckoo is fairly common, and no Cuckoo 
egg other than the one described has been found there that could be attributed 
to this Cuckoo. On one occasion a pair of G. modesta was seen chasing a 
Brush Cuckoo out of the swamp.” 
From the Claudie River Macgillivray added “ Brown-backed Honey-eaters 
were very common birds in the trees and shrubs in the open forest. They 
usually nest in the tea-tree—a few before the wet season, but the 
majority after it has started. We found a number of their nests, mostly 
commencing or half built, in a tea-tree swamp on the 9th January. They 
are usually suspended from the ends of branches over the water. By the 
21st January the nests mostly contained eggs, usually a pair. These nests 
are formed wholly of the fibrous bark of the tea-tree and lined with soft 
flaky bark from the same tree. On the 27th we waded through the tea-tree 
swamps near the sandalwood landing and examined numbers of these nests. 
The first swamp had tall tea-trees in it and clumps of small tea-tree saplings, 
all standing in about two feet of clear water. It is on the saplings that this 
Honey-eater suspends its nest. The first nest examined contained an egg of 
the Square-tailed Cuckoo ; most of the others, incubating eggs of the Honey- 
eater. In a deeper portion of the same swamp we found two nests, the first 
containing a Cuckoo’s egg and two of the Honey-eater, the other an egg of 
each bird. Next day, in another swamp, we found nests containing newly- 
hatched young. The eyes of the young birds were not open ; the skin flesh- 
coloured and naked, and the gape pale yellow. This bird is also common 
on the Archer River.” 
Campbell and Barnard, regarding Rockingham Bay birds, wrote: 
“ This modest coloured Honey-eater was a common bird, and many of their 
elongated, covered-in nests were seen, suspended chiefly in tea-trees over 
hanging water or creek beds. . . It is remarkable that only two species of 
all the Honey-eaters construct covered nests, this and Glyciphila fasciata . . . 
Mr. Mathews is probably correct in separating these two singular nest-builders 
from the true Glyciphilce, which construct open nests, usually in lov r situations.” 
A little later Campbell recorded McLennan’s notes from the Torres Straits 
Islands: “Fairly numerous on Moa. 25/1/20. Follow a creek along wdiich 
paper-barks are growing. Creek has been running several feet deep, but only 
occasional pools are now left. Three pairs of Brown-backed Honey-eaters 
observed building in trees overhanging water.” 
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