BIRDS OF THE BLOSSOMS AND OUTER FOLIAGE IO7 
notes. Usually in small flocks, frequenting, for the most part, the 
outer foliage and blossoms of gum-trees, searching for insects and 
nectar. It has a high-pitched call-note, repeated quickly. 
nest. An open, cup-shaped structure, composed of bark, grasses, 
horse-hair, and cow-hair, neatly built, and bound with cobweb and 
spiders' egg-bags; lined with hair or fur. Usually suspended from the 
drooping branches of a eucalypt tree. 
eggs. Two or three, pale reddish-buff, spotted and finely speckled 
with reddish-brown and purplish-grey markings, confined chiefly to 
the larger end. Breeding-season: August to December. 
22. Black-headed Honey-eater Melithreptus affinis Lesson 
af-fin'-is— L., affinis , allied. 
distribution. Tasmania and the islands of Bass Strait. 
notes. Usually in flocks, frequenting, chiefly, the outer foliage and 
blossoms of gum-trees; it also visits gardens and orchards, doing con¬ 
siderable damage to the smaller fruits. It has a short, sharp call-note, 
repeated several times. Food: insects, nectar, and cultivated fruits. 
nest. A rather deep, cup-shaped structure, composed of strips of 
bark, wool, and cobwebs; warmly lined with hair, fur, and feathers. 
Usually suspended from the small twigs at the end of a drooping 
branch of a eucalypt tree; frequently built high up from the ground. 
eggs. Two or three, pale flesh-pink, minutely spotted and speckled 
with reddish-brown and dull purplish-grey markings, confined chiefly 
to the larger end. Breeding-season: October to the end of December. 
