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rare Eggs of Australian Birds. 
“ In the clutch I got on December 27th there was one egg 
which I think is that of Flinders’s Cuckoo, and, strange 
to say, it was the first egg laid in the nest; it was in the 
nest when we found it, and it was not until two or three 
days later that the Friar-bird laid its two eggs, as on coming 
back four days after we found the three in the nest.” The 
egg is very similar in colour to that of a well-marked egg of 
the Philemon argenticeps : it has a reddish-pink ground' 
colour, and is well marked all over with elongated reddish- 
brown blotches : these are more numerous at the larger end, 
but do not form a zone. The egg measures F25 x 0*90 inch. 
6. Poephila nigrotecta Hartert. (Hartert’s Finch.) 
These Finches were found nesting by Mr. R. Hislop not 
far from Cooktown, North Queensland. The birds were 
described last year by Mr. E. Hartert in ‘ The Ibis ’ (1899, 
p. 647). 
These birds, like the majority of Finches, feed mostly on 
the ground, where they can generally get a plentiful supply 
of grass and other seeds. They nest apparently very early, 
as Mr. Hislop found eggs on June 9th, 1899. The nest 
contained five fresh eggs, and was the usual bulky domed 
structure, composed of grass, and built in a thick bush. 
The full clutch is five; the eggs are pure white, and a 
swollen oval in shape. They measure : A 0*56 X 0'41, B 0*52 
x 0-42, C 0*52 x 0*42, D 0*52 X 0‘42, E 0*53 x 0’42 inch. 
7. Smicrornis plavescens Gould. (Yellow - tinted 
Smicrornis.) 
The nest and eggs of this diminutive little bird, probably 
the smallest of any Australian species, were found by 
Mr. R. Hislop near Cooktown on October 22nd, 1899. He 
writes: “ I found this bird’s nest in a melaleuca-tree, 
about 15 feet from the ground. I shot both birds at the 
nest. The female had one egg in her when shot, but it was 
broken. I have found other nests, but they all contained 
two young ones.” These little birds are very difficult to 
detect, from their habit of keeping among the topmost 
branches of the trees, hunting for their insect prey. The 
