BIRDS OF THE OPEN FOREST 
57 
PLATE IX 
BIRDS OF THE OPEN FOREST 
1. Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike Coracina novce-hollandice Gmelin 
Cor-a-ci-na —G-k, coracinos , raven-like: ?iovce-lwllandi(E —of New Holland. 
Distribution .—Australia generally, and Tasmania; accidental to New 
Zealand; also occurs in the Celebes, Timor, Molucca Islands, and New 
Guinea. 
Notes .—Also called Blue Jay, Summer-bird, Blue Pigeon, Lapwing, 
Cherry-hawk, Leatherhead, and Jay. Usually in pairs or small flocks, 
inhabiting open forest-lands chiefly. It is partly nomadic, being observed 
less in the winter than in the summer. Its flight is undulating and power¬ 
ful; it is seldom seen upon the ground. The call is a strange rattle of 
flute-like notes often uttered while in flight. Food: large insects and their 
larvse, procured among the leaves of the trees; also berries. 
Nest. —A small, nearly flat structure, composed of fine twigs, grass, 
bark-fibre, plant-stems or leaves, and fibrous rootlets, bound together 
with cobwebs. Some nests are decorated on the outside with small pieces 
of bark. Usually built in the angle of a forked horizontal branch of a tree. 
Eggs .—Usually three, olive-green to pale olive-brown, spotted, chiefly 
on the larger end, with different shades of umber and chestnut-brown, and 
underlying spots of dull grey. Breeding-season: August to January (New 
South Wales); February, March, and July (Queensland). 
2. White-breasted Cuckoo-shrike Coracina hypoleuca Gould 
hy-po-leuc'-a —Gk, hypo, under; Gk, leucos , white. 
Distribution. —Northern tropical Australia; also occurs in the Aru 
Islands, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands. 
Notes. —Usually in pairs or small flocks, inhabiting open forest 
country. It is very similar in habits and economy to the Black-faced 
Cuckoo-shrike. 
Nest .—A small, nearly flat structure, composed of grass and fine 
twigs, bound together with cobwebs. Usually built in the angle of a forked 
horizontal branch of a tree. 
Eggs.— Usually two, bluish-green, blotched with different shades of 
brown, and underlying markings of purplish-grey. Breeding-season: 
October to January. 
