BIRDS OF THE REED-BEDS AND GRASS-LANDS 
*97 
with scrub; also common in partly cleared and cultivated lands. It is 
nomadic in habits, and spends much of its time on the ground feeding 
chiefly on the seeds of grasses and herbaceous plants. Its song is a 
quaint soft trill, somewhat like a tune played on a toy musical-box. 
nest. A bottle-shaped structure, built on its side, composed of dried 
grasses and soft plant-stalks; lined with feathers and other soft 
materials. Generally placed in a low bush, in vines or shrubs growing 
in gardens, in hollow limbs or holes in trees, in houses or sheds, and 
even in rabbit burrows. 
eggs. Four to eight, faint bluish-white. Breeding-season: under 
normal conditions, August to December. 
4. Painted Finch Cayleyna picta Gould 
Cayleyna— N. W. Cayley, the author of this book: pid-ta— L., pictus, 
painted. 
distribution. Mid-western and north-western Australia, Northern 
Territory, central Australia, and north-western Queensland (Cloncurry 
Range). 
notes. Usually in pairs or small flocks, frequenting stony hillsides 
where spinifex flourishes or grass-lands bordering watercourses. It has 
no song, but utters a pleasing twitter when flushed. It spends much of 
its time on the ground, searching for the seeds of grasses and other 
plants. 
nest. A flimsy, bottle-shaped structure, composed of dried grasses, 
chiefly spinifex stems; lined with plant down. Generally placed in a 
natural cavity near the top of a clump of spinifex, or in a low bush. 
eggs. Four or five, white. Breeding-season: in any month from 
April to October or December. 
5. Red-browed Finch ALgintha temporalis Latham 
AL-gin'-tha— Gk, aigintha, a kind of bird: tem-por-a'-lis— L., temporalis, 
templed. 
distribution. Eastern Australia, from northern Queensland to 
South Australia. 
notes. Also called Redhead, Waxbill, Sydney Waxbill, Redbill, and 
Temporal Finch. Usually in pairs or flocks, frequenting alike grass¬ 
lands, partly cleared and cultivated lands, open forest, and the fringes 
of scrub-lands. It is a common species and abundant in the neighbour¬ 
hood of towns and cities. It spends much of its time on the ground, 
feeding on the seeds of grasses and herbaceous plants. It has no song, 
but utters a plaintive twitter when flushed or when in flight. 
nest. A bulky, bottle-shaped structure, composed of dried and green 
grasses; lined with feathers and fine grasses. Generally placed in a small 
tree or bush, frequently in one entangled with vines. 
eggs. Five to eight, white. Breeding-season: September to January. 
