THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
broods as long as the good season, and consequently a supply of grass-seeds, 
lasts. The nests are built mostly of fine, dry grass, with sometimes a few 
flower-stalks, as everlastings, intermmgled. They are bottle-shaped, or oval 
domes, and I have fomid them in different species of bushes, in hollows on 
trees, or large logs, and in the mider-parts of large nests, such as Eagles, 
Hawks, and Crows. Hi October, 1887, I climbed to some nests of Whistling 
Eagles on the Lower Murchison River, and fomid several nests of these Finches, 
built m the under-parts of the nests, containing eggs and young birds. The 
clutch seems to be four to six. In October, 1911, when it was an abnormally 
dry season about Broome HiU, and aU the inland and northern areas generally, 
numbers of these Finches were noted ui the district.” 
Dr. Cleland has nmitten me : “ In October, 1907, very numerous at Port 
Sampson, Port Hedland, StreUey River, North-west Austraha. Anywhere 
in fact where fresh w'ater was. Hundreds are often seen together and they 
resemble Passer domesticus in flight and build, but are smaller. They bmld 
near waterholes in prickly acacias, bushes, hoUow trees, etc. ; some bmlt in 
gum branches put up to shelter our tent.” 
Air. J. P. Rogers’ notes from Point Torment, North-west Austraha: 
‘ Alarcli 21st, 1911. A few birds passed the camp to-day; are the first seen 
here. Alarch 27th. Alany about here now, are m small flocks. April 10th. 
Occasionally a few seen, appear to be travelling. April 20th. Very few seen 
lately. Later. These birds never settled down, all seen appear to be travelling. 
In Derby tins is a resident species, in fact it is m aU parts of Kimberley I had 
been m mitil I came to Pomt Torment. Until about four years ago there was 
no fresh water here ; then the country wns stocked with a few cattle and two 
wells sunk, so perhaps the birds have never settled down here, only pass through 
in the wnt season. There are always birds at an old well about twenty miles 
aAvay on the road into Derby. . . . Alany hundreds of these birds watered 
at a mud spring near my camp at Alamgle Creek. At Almigi they were also 
very common, many nests were seen m the course of construction, some in 
bushes, others in the spouts of trees ; in some cases the spouts were forty feet 
from the gromid, m others about tlmee feet. No nests were seen hi the branches 
more than ten feet from gromid. No complete sets of eggs were seen. Tliis 
bird is not numerous on the coast but is the common Fmcli of inland districts 
in IHmberley.” 
Keartland’s notes from the North-'west are of interest: “ These little 
birds had a pecuhar share in our interest, as their presence in numbers is a 
pretty good indication of the proximity of water. Wherever rock-holes and 
w'ells contauiing water were fomid immense flocks of these birds were seen. 
They seem to possess an insatiable tliirst, and wdU ahght m flocks to drink 
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