/. Harman—Two Handsome Honey eaters



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giving forth a continuous screeching until one is fairly deafened with

the monotony of the sound.


The other Honeyeater I shall describe is a smaller and infinitely

more beautiful one, the Spine-bill (.Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris).

Briefly this may be described as looking something like a large Yellow¬

winged Sugar-bird in shape, but rich chestnut below and dark green

and blackish above. The actual colouring is as follows : Crown shining

greenish-black ; back of the neck chestnut-rufus, passing into chestnut-

brown on the back ; rump greenish grey ; throat, cheeks, and chest

white, the first with a patch of chestnut-brown in the centre ; black

half-moon shaped band on the side of the chest; abdomen chestnut,

lighter under the tail; wings and tail mostly black, with greenish

tints; length, about 4 to 5 inches. Habitat: Tasmania, King

Island, Furneaux group (in Bass Strait), New South Wales, Victoria,

South Australia, and Queensland.


Though possibly not quite so common as the last-mentioned species,

the Spine-bill is very evenly distributed in all parts of its range, but

is particularly common on the dry scrub country, covered with Austra¬

lian Heaths ( Epacris ). In the winter these plants flower, and then

are visited by regular little flocks of Spine-bills which cling to the

stems and suck out the sweet nectar.


It is a pretty sight to come across a number of these birds crossing

Epacris country. They are so elegant in flight, and dainty in move¬

ments. Mostly they feed on low-growing flowering shrubs and plants,

and rarely frequent the high Eucalyptus trees, the haunt of many

species of Honey eaters. In disposition the Spine-bill is most fearless,

and allows itself to be approached very closely, a fact which leads

to the destruction of many of its numbers by small boys armed with

air rifles and catapults.


An unusual habit of this lovely little bird is to hover Humming¬

bird-like in front of flowers, at which times the tail is very widely

spread, plainly displaying the white outer feathers, normally not

noticeable. Its vocal capacities are limited to a decidedly shrill little

note.


The nest is very hard indeed to find. It is a neatly made cup-shaped

structure, composed of moss and strips of bark from Eucalyptus trees,



