66 
THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
eggs. Two or three, white, marked with dark olive and grey mark¬ 
ings, which form a zone at the larger end. Breeding-season: August 
to January. 
13. Grey Shrike-thrush Colluricincla harmonica Latham 
Coll-u-ri-cinc'-la—G k, collurion, shrike; Gk, cinclos (kigklos ), bird 
(thrush): har-mon'-i-ca— L., harmonious , harmonious. 
distribution. Eastern and south-eastern Australia (from Cape 
York to South Australia), Kangaroo Island, and Tasmania. 
notes. Also called Harmonious Thrush, Native Thrush, Pluff, 
Mourner, and Whistling Dick. A friendly and useful bird, easily tamed. 
Well named Harmonica , being a charming whistler with a fine reper¬ 
toire of liquid notes. Food: chiefly insects. 
nest. A large, cup-shaped structure, composed of long strips of 
bark, wiry roots, and grass; neatly lined with fine rootlets and grass. 
Built in a variety of situations such as hollows in tops of stumps and 
broken-off branches, in burnt-out hollows in trees, and in upright forks. 
eggs. Three or four, pearly-white or creamy-white, spotted and 
blotched with dark olive, olive-brown, and pale grey markings. 
Breeding-season: August to December. 
14. Brown Shrike-thrush Colluricincla brunnea Gould 
brun'-ne-a— L., brunneus , brown. 
distribution. North-western Australia, from Roebuck Bay 
through the Northern Territory to Leichhardt River (north-western 
Queensland). 
notes. Similar in habits to the Grey Shrike-thrush. 
nest. An open, cup-shaped structure, composed of strips of bark 
and leaves; lined with leaves. Usually placed in an old stump, or in a 
cleft in a wall of sandstone. 
eggs. Three or four, varying in shape and size, white, spotted and 
blotched with light olive-brown and pale slate markings, chiefly at 
the larger end. Breeding-season: September to November or December. 
15. Little Shrike-thrush Colluricincla parvula Gould 
par'-vu-la— L., paruulus , very small. 
distribution. North-western Australia, from Arnhem Land to 
Admiralty Gulf (Northern Terriiory). 
notes, inhabits the thickets, also mangroves. It is extremely shy, 
and is generally seen on or near the ground. Food: insects of various 
kinds. 
nest. Cup-shaped, composed of strips of bark, and placed in the 
hollow of a tree. 
eggs. Two or three, dull white, finely marked all over with spots 
and specks of pale to dark olive-brown and dull purplisli-grey, heavier 
at the larger end. Breeding-season: December and January. 
