SOME BIRDS OF THE SCRUB-LANDS 127 
eastern side of the coastal range); also occurs in New Guinea and the 
Louisiade Archipelago. 
notes. Usually in pairs or small flocks, frequenting the scrub, open 
forest, and mangroves. It is a shy species, more often heard than seen. 
Usually the bower built by this bird is a compact structure of closely 
interwoven sticks and twigs, in fact so compact are the walls of the 
bower that they can be moved en masse . The decorations used about 
the bowers are mostly bunches of green berries. This species is an 
excellent mimic. Food: seeds, and native fruits and berries. 
nest. An open, cup-shaped structure, composed of sticks, twigs, and 
bark; lined with finer materials. Usually placed in a tree, at heights 
up to 30 feet or more from the ground. 
eggs. Usually one; pale creamy-white, covered with a tangled net¬ 
work of lines and hair-like markings of olive-brown, umber, purplish- 
grey, and blackish-brown. Breeding-season: September to December. 
12. Great Bower-bird Chlamydera nuchalis Jardine and Selby—12A. 
Female 
nu-cha'-lis— L., nuchalis, naped. 
distribution. Tropical northern Australia. 
notes. Usually in pairs or small flocks, frequenting the scrub, open 
forest, and mangroves. It is said to be less noisy and not such a good 
mimic as the Spotted Bower-bird. Its bowers are usually built in 
isolated patches of scrub; they average about 2 feet in length by 18 
inches in width and 15 inches in height; often they are roofed over. 
The decorations usually consist of bleached shells of land-snails or 
pieces of bleached coral. Food: seeds, and native fruits and berries. 
nest. Like that of the Spotted Bower-bird, but often not so well 
built. It is generally composed of a few sticks and twigs, and placed 
in a thick bunch of twigs in a tree at heights up to 20 feet or more 
from the ground. 
eggs. One or two, pale greyish-green, marked, like those of the 
Spotted Bower-bird, with a tangled tracery of lines and hair-like mark¬ 
ings of olive-brown, umber, blackish-brown, and purplish-grey. Breed¬ 
ing-season: September to February. 
