THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
76 
formed they excavate a chamber large enough to accommodate them¬ 
selves and family. 
eggs. Four to six, pure white and rounded. Breeding-season: October 
to January. 
11. Forest Kingfisher Halcyon macleayi Jardine and Selby 
macleayi- W. S. Macleay (1792-1865), naturalist, founder of natural 
history in New South Wales. 
distribution. North-western, northern, and eastern Australia 
to as far south as north-eastern New South Wales. 
notes. Also called Macleay’s Kingfisher, Bush Kingfisher, and Blue 
Kingfisher. It is a stationary species in northern Australia; arrives in 
north-eastern New South Wales in September, departs in March. It is 
very similar in habits to the Sacred Kingfisher; most vicious when 
nesting; the call is loud and is uttered intermittently throughout the 
day. Food: large insects, small lizards, fish, and crabs. The female 
does not possess the white nuchal collar, the colour of the head 
taking its place. 
nest. A hollowed-out cavity in a termites* nest on a tree, at an 
average height of 30 feet from the ground. 
eggs. Four to six, pure white and rounded. Breeding-season: October 
to December or January. 
12. Red-backed Kingfisher Halcyon pyrrhopygius Gould 
pyr-rho-pyg-i-us (g = j)-Gk, pyrrhos , fire-coloured; Gk, pyge , rump, 
tail. 
distribution. Australia generally, chiefly the inland portions. 
notes. Also called Golden Kingfisher. Usually in pairs. Arrives in 
New South Wales during September, departs in March; only stragglers 
reach the coastal districts, and it is rarely seen east of the Dividing 
Range. It keeps to dry areas, often miles from water; call, a single 
mournful note, uttered at short intervals, but kept up incessantly. 
Food: large insects and their larvae and small lizards. 
nest. A tunnel in a bank of a dry creek, or in a termites* nest. 
eggs. Four or five, pure white and rounded. Breeding-season: Sep¬ 
tember or October to December or January. 
13. Dollar-bird (Broad-billed Roller) Eurystomus orientalis Linn£ 
Eur'-y’Stom'’Us— Gk, eurys, wide; Gk, stoma, mouth: or-i-en-ta'-lis— L., 
orientalis, eastern. 
distribution. North-western Australia, Northern Territory, and 
eastern Australia; also as stragglers in South Australia, Tasmania, Lord 
Howe Island, and New Zealand. 
notes. Usually in pairs; arrives late September or early October, 
departs at end of February or March. It spends much of its time perched 
on the highest dead branch of a tall tree, from which it will dart 
into the air in pursuit of some flying insect. At dusk it “hawks*’ con- 
