THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
hard-set egg; this nest was 50 feet up in a bush scrub tree. ?, length in 
flesh, 7| inches; irides brown, bill black, legs leaden-blue. Stomaeli contents, 
insect remains.” From the Claudie River, Macgillivray added: “ Streak- 
naped Honey-eaters were always to be seen about the edge of the scrub, where 
the leafage comes down to the view; they also came out into the open forest 
trees, especially during the wet season, and were common in the trees over 
and about our camp. The roof of the scrub, where the trees and interlacing 
climbers flower and fruit in the simlight, and where there must be a wealth 
of insect life, is the hunting ground of most of the scrub birds. This is 
usually at a height of from 70 to 100 feet, and well out of sight of anyone on 
the groimd, and it is only at the edge where the trees and chmbers come 
gradually down to the grormd, or along the banks of the river where it runs 
through the scrub, and the trees and shrubs festooned by climbing plants 
with leafage of every form and colouring and adorned by flowers and fruits of 
every hue, that one gets an opportunity of watching many of the birds. The 
nests of this Honey-eater are not easily found, as they are usually placed 
high in some bushy scrub tree, where they are liidden from below. We several 
times found old nests when cutting down such trees in the scrub to enable us 
to use the rope ladder. One nest was, however, detected near our camp at the 
sandalwood landing, high in a slender gum tree. Here, also, the birds were 
plentiful in the flowering gums, and one frequently saw them with a company 
of other honey-lovuig birds revelling in the feast provided by the flowering 
tops of the umbreUa-tree. The eggs were invariably two in number, and 
varied much in colouring, but all had a beautiful glossy surface. Mi'. McLennan 
noted a few on the Archer.” 
The Cape York bird is much paler but of the same style of coloration as 
the New Guinea bird named Myzantka flaviventer by Lesson. This bird was 
also named Philedon chrysotis by Lesson, but when it was included m Ptilotis 
there was a bird with the name chrysotis of prior introduction. The recognition 
of the genus Xanthotis revived the early chrysotis of Lesson and it has been 
commonly used. It has been proved recently that the name flaviventer was 
pubhshed first. 
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