BIRDS OF THE OPEN FOREST 
6 3 
notes. Also called Black-and-white Robin, Black Robin, and Pied 
Robin. Usually in pairs; the conspicuous plumage of the male attracts 
attention; it is unobtrusive in habits, with a feeble call-note. Food: 
insects, mostly procured on the ground. 
nest. Cup-shaped, composed of fine rootlets, bark and grass, bound 
together with cobwebs; lined with very fine rootlets; occasionally 
decorated with strips of bark. Usually built in an upright fork of a 
tree up to 12 feet from the ground. 
eggs. Two or three, pale olive to apple-green, more or less clouded 
with rich brown, particularly at the larger end. Breeding-season: 
August to December. 
4. Southern Yellow Robin Eopsaltria australis Shaw 
E-op-sal'-tri-a— Gk, eos , dawn; Gk, psaltria , harper (“Dawn-singer”): 
australis— L., australis , southern (Australian). 
distribution. Eastern and south-eastern Australia. 
notes. Also called Yellow-breasted Shrike-robin, Yellow Bob, Bark 
Robin, and Yellow-hammer. A friendly bird and easily tamed; one of 
the earliest birds to awaken and one of the last to go to roost. It has a 
habit of perching sideways on a tree-trunk. Call-note, a pleasing 
continuous piping, heard at its best at dawn and dusk. Food: insects 
and their larvae. 
nest. Cup-shaped, composed of grass-stems and rootlets joined with 
cobw r ebs; lined with finer rootlets; beautifully decorated on the outside 
with strips of bark and pieces of lichen. Often built in an upright or 
horizontal fork, and sometimes on a horizontal branch of a low tree, 
frequently within hands’ reach from the ground. 
eggs. Two or three, pale apple-green to greenish-blue, spotted and 
blotched with reddish or chestnut-brown and paler markings. Some 
eggs are evenly marked, others have a well-defined zone or cap at the 
larger end. Breeding-season: July to January. 
5. Little Yellow Robin Eopsaltria kempi Mathews 
Kempi— Robin Kemp, British collector, who has done field-work in 
Australia. 
distribution. Northern Queensland, from Cape York to Claudie 
River. 
notes. Has the habits of a Flycatcher, making short flights from branch 
to branch and occasionally into the air to capture insects, uttering 
the while a continuous subdued piping call, resembling “Zzt, zzt, zzt". 
nest. Not described. 
eggs. Not described. 
6. Western Yellow Robin Eospsaltria griseogularis Gould 
gris'-c-o-gu-la'-ris- L., griseus, grey; L., gularis , throated. 
distribution. South-western and South Australia, from the Won- 
gan Hills to Eyre’s Peninsula. 
