WHITE-BEARDED HONEY-EATER. 
upright fork of a slu’ub or bush (once found a suspended nest but this is not 
usual), generally a thick bush and not more than eight feet from the gi’ound. 
The nest is constructed of fine twigs, dry grass and rootlets, cobwebs as a binder, 
lined with thistledown, soft flower-heads, wool, animal fur, such as rabbit or 
opossum. I have seen many nests not lined containing eggs and young; the young 
are hatched naked and they leave the nest in from nineteen to twenty-flve days.” 
Ml’. J. W. Mellor has ivTitten me: “One of the commonest of Honey- 
eaters in the southern parts of Australia, where it inhabits all kinds of country, 
but prefers the bush country where honeysuclde and the bottle-brush grows, 
as its food is obtained from the various flowers that abound in these parts. 
I have seen these birds in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and 
Southern Queensland, also tliis or a closely allied variety in Tasmania and the 
Islands of Bass Straits. At the Reedbeds where I live they are fairly plentiful 
in the garden and you may see them at any time flitting about in the trees 
and slu’ubs ; when they are sucking the honey from the blooms they are very 
pugihstic, and when other Honey-eaters come they dart at them, snapping 
then’ beaks and making a harsh grating note of disapproval which soon puts 
other small birds to flight. On Kangaroo Island they are also very common 
in aU paints where the timber affords shelter and there are plenty of ideal 
gullies Mith thick bush in them. The nesting-season is generally from September 
to December, but I have sometimes seen them breedmg dirrina; the autumn 
and vdnter months, viz.. May, June, July, but this is probably due to the 
di’y weather making them breed out of the usual time.” 
Ml’. A. H. Mattingley has ^v^itten me : “Yomig born blind and naked, 
skin of a fleshy colom’. Interior of mouth and throat black, edging of rim 
of mouth pale yellow when three days old.” 
Mr. E. J. Cliristian writes : “ They are exceedingly fond of the ‘ Coastal 
Honeysuckle-tree ’ which has large, yellow, bushy flowers which contain much 
nectar and thus attract many honey-loving birds. These birds are great 
bullies and I have seen them driving birds much larger than themselves out 
of these trees in order to keep it to themselves.” 
HaU recorded in comiection with the birds of Eyre Peninsula: “ Dr. 
George Horne noticed eighteen young in one tree, with their parents about 
and feeding them (Wanilla, 14/10;09). Such an occurrence, of the young 
bunching, I have noticed with the Rock-hopper Penguin in Kerguelen Island. 
This Honey-eater is the common bird of the Peninsula where om’ camp was 
pitched. In the low scrub which extends over a large area, and where birds are 
not strong in species, tlxis one and GlycypMla melanops were numerically strong.” 
Dove recorded in 1911 from Devonport, Tasmania: “Large numbers 
of the handsome New Holland (Wliite-bearded) Honey-eaters (Meliornis 
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