4 6 
THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
surface or under rocks and fallen logs, seeking insects of all kinds. Its 
clear call-notes, some of which resemble those of the White-browed Scrub- 
wren, are uttered at intervals. 
Nest .—A dome-shaped structure with an entrance at the side hooded 
over, composed of bark-fibre and grasses, coated with fine green moss and 
also cobwebs and spiders’ egg-bags; lined with fine bark-fibres and 
feathers. The upper portion of the nest, where it is attached to the ceiling 
of the cave, is formed almost entirely of cobwebs. Nests are built in all 
manner of situations— sheds, out-houses, under culverts, in drains or 
shafts, but mostly in caves. 
Eggs. —Three, pure white, occasionally marked with very fine spots. 
Breeding-season: July to December. 
15. Pilot-bird Pycnoptilus floccosus Gould 
Pyc-nop'-til-ns- — Gk, pycnos, thick; ptilon, feather: flocc-o-sus— L., ioc- 
cosus, downy. 
Distribution. — South-eastern New South Wales to eastern Victoria 
(Dandenong Ranges). 
Notes .—Also called Downy Pycnoptilus. Usually in pairs, inhabitin' 
heavily timbered mountain ranges and dense scrubs. It is more often heard 
than seen; its beautiful notes, resembling “Guinea-a-week,” are heard 
above the songs of most other birds. It is verv active while seeking insect- 
life among the debris and fallen leaves. 
Nest.-—A dome-shaped structure with an entrance at the side, con- 
posed of stiips of bark and bark-fibre, with which are interwoven leaves, 
tern rootlets, and grass; lined with bark-fibre and feathers. Built on the 
ground. 
Eggs.— Two, varying from drab to smoky-brown and duskv-grev. 
darker at the larger end, usually forming a zone. Breeding-season' -\uc- 
list ro Hehriiarv 
16. Ground-thrush Oreocincla lunulata Latham 
j~ Gk ’ or ^ s ’ .°reos, mountain; Gk, cinclos (kigklos), bird: 
lu-nu-la -ta L., marked with little moons (crescents). 
Victm-h^ 9™ o!'T E f t r nl x l 4ustralia (from northern Queensland 1: 
Victoria), South Australia, Kangaroo Island, and Tasmania. 
pairs' o? H^ih? S n a C p Ied ¥°, Un m' n T hrUsh and Kin & Thrush. Usually in 
brushes where l ' r * eS ’ habits chiefly the floors of dense scrubs and 
procured t tt J ge T SS ' C ° Ver ? d r ° cks and lQ g s abound - Its f ° odsis 
insects of varinns^^ 1 ^- amon £ fallen leaves and debris, and consists of 
resemble the nm ' ° j’ ' vorms » land crustaceans, and molluscs. Its notes 
resemble the noise made by a ratchet-drill boring a metal plate. 
bark mosses ° pcn / cu P-shaped structure, composed of strips of 
in a fork of -i ] 0 w ir' 100 e,s j j lned with green mosses. Usually placed 
on a tl,ick ,orl “ d ,r “" k 
