BUSH LARK. 
Mr, Tom Carter’s notes read : “ The Onslow Bush Lark was first observed 
by me on Oct. 30, 1900, while driving from Point Cloates to Winning Pool 
telegraph station (60 miles south-east of Onslow). When about 16 miles west 
of Whuung my attention was attracted by some very rufous Larks dusting 
themselves hi the dark-red sandy groimd close to the road. I left the buggy, 
and shot three of them. The birds were tame, running on the ground in 
front of me. One or two were seen to perch on the tops of some bushes. 
Writing to Mr. A. J. Campbell some tune afterwards I mentioned these birds, 
but did not send lihn any skhis. I had hitended waslung a skin to see if some 
of the rufous colourmg was caused by fine dust hi the plumage, but did not, 
as I was very busy, and the skhis were put on one side. In the following 
year Mr. Milligan’s description of the new subspecies appeared, and I sent 
two of my skhis to Perth Museum for comparison, and was told that they 
were identical. On subsequent occasions some of the birds were seen and 
obtained about the same place, on reddish sandy ground (protective coloration). 
On February 5, 1902, after very heavy thunder rams, I camped on the road, 
ivith my native boy, near where the first specimens were obtahied, and while 
we were eathig our supper by light of the camp fire, we noticed one of these 
Larks creephig about on the gromid, actually between us. Feeling sure that 
we were close to its nest, we kept quiet, and in a few minutes saw the bird 
settle down hi it, only a few feet distant. The nest was built beloiv the level 
of the gromid, hi a hollow, as of a horse’s foot print, out of which grew a tuft 
of green grass, hi which the nest was w'ell concealed. It was made almost 
entirely of grass, and contahied four fresh eggs, the first obtahied. Since 
that date I have been able to verify the extension of the range of the birds by 
seeing many of them on open flats of reddish sand on the south of Minilya 
River and nearly two hmidred miles south of Onslow, where the type specimens 
were obtahied, and in the same month (Sept. 1911) I saw several of them 
close to the coast at Maud’s Landhig. None of these birds have, as yet, been 
observed on the Gascoyne River, as far as I know.” 
Keartland’s notes read : “ On the grassy fiats which extend for some 
distance on each side of the Fitzroy River, these birds are so numerous as 
to convey the idea that the headquarters of the species is in that locality. 
When we arrived at the lagoon near the river mentioned on November 6th, 
I was surprised at their numbers. As we passed along, a constant succession 
of birds kept rising from the ground and fl5dng to the right and left of our 
line, but seldom more than twenty yards before they again settled. It was 
impossible to throw a stick in any direction without disturbing several. 
Around the lagoon they were found in such numbers as to remind one of Sparrows 
in a dry thistle field. They were very plentiful near the Fitzroy River 
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