BIRDS OF THE BRUSHES AND BIG SCRUBS 
9 
PLATE II 
BIRDS OF THE BRUSHES AND BIG SCRUBS 
1. Lewin Honey-eater Meliphaga lewini Swainson 
Mel-iph'-ag-a —Gk, rneli, honey; Gk, phagein , to eat: lewini —John 
William Lewin, ornithologist and artist. 
Distribution. —Eastern Australia, from Barron River (northern 
Queensland) to Victoria. 
Notes. —Also called Yellow-eared Honey-eater and Banana-bird. 
Usually in pairs, frequenting the dense low scrubby trees; it is a fearless 
bird, allowing one to approach quite near without showing alarm. Its 
song is a feature of the brushes, being a succession of loud, ringing notes. 
Food: insects, pollen, and nectar; also native fruits and berries and 
cultivated fruits. 
Nest. —A well-made, cup-shaped structure, composed of strips of 
bark, skeletons of leaves, moss, and spiders' egg-bags, held together with 
spiders' webs; warmly lined with dried grasses and plant down. Sus¬ 
pended by the rim to a thin forked horizontal limb of a thick foliaged tree, 
at heights up to 20 feet from the ground. 
Eggs. —Usually two, occasionally three, white, well spotted and 
blotched, chiefly at the larger end, with light to rich reddish-brown or 
purplish-black markings. Breeding-season: September to January. 
2. Yellow-throated Scrub-wren Sericornis lathami Stephens 
Ser-ic-orn-is —Gk, sericos, silken; Gk, ornis, bird: lathami —Dr John 
Latham (1740-1837), English ornithologist, who published, in 1801, the 
first important work on Australian birds. 
Distribution. —Eastern Queensland to Victoria. 
Notes. —Also called Devil-bird. Usually in pairs, searching for 
insect-life on the ground, on logs, or among fallen leaves and other debris. 
It is fearless in disposition, often approaching to within a few feet of 
the observer. It utters a rich, clear call-note, and is also an excellent 
mimic, imitating the calls and songs of the other birds with which it 
associates. Food: insects and their larvae. 
Nest. —A bulky, domed structure, with a slightly hooded entrance in 
the lower portion, composed of rootlets and skeletons of leaves, inter¬ 
mingled with mosses; lined with feathers. Attached near the end of a 
leafy pendulous branch of a tree, often overhanging water, at heights up 
to 20 feet or more from the ground. 
