102 
THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA 
aleucas, and banksias, seeking insects and nectar. The male utters one 
of the liveliest songs of all our small birds, a succession of remarkably 
sweet and clear notes, often heard during the midday heat of summer 
when nearly all other species are silent. 
Nest .—A small, cup-shaped structure, composed of thin strips of 
bark and rootlets, and sometimes horse-hair; usually scantily lined with 
very fine grass and a few rootlets, and occasionally with horse-hair. Gen¬ 
erally suspended from a thin, forked, horizontal twig of a drooping branch 
of a tree. Favourite nesting-trees are turpentines and paper-barks. 
Eggs. —Two, rarely three, white with a faint pinkish tinge, spotted 
and speckled with dull chestnut, reddish-brown, and purplish-grey mark¬ 
ings, forming a zone at the larger end. Breeding-season: October to De¬ 
cember or January. 
7. Red-headed Honey-eater Myzomela erythrocephala Gould 
e-ryth'-ro-ceph'-al-a —Gk, erythros, red; Gk, cephale, head. 
Distribution. —Tropical northern Australia, from Derby (north¬ 
western Australia) to Cape York (northern Queensland) ; also occurs in 
New Guinea. 
Notes. —Usually in flocks, frequenting the mangroves and adjacent 
scrub, seeking insects and nectar from the flowers. It is very active, flit¬ 
ting from one cluster of flowers to another, uttering at the "same time a 
rather sharp and hard chirrup. 
Nest. Like that of the Scarlet Honey-eater, usually placed in the 
tops of the highest mangroves. 
Eggs — Two. white, finely spotted with pale chestnut, reddish-brown, 
and purplish-grey, the markings being chiefly confined to the larger end 
Breeding-season : October to January. 
8. Banded Honey-eater Myzomela pectoralis Gould 
pec-tor-a -lis —L., pectoralis, breasted. 
Distribution. Tropical northern Australia. 
Notes. Appears to be nomadic. Usually in flocks, frequenting the 
flowering trees and shrubs. Food : insects and nectar. 1 g 
„ , Nest. A small, cup-shaped structure, composed of strips of bark 
grasses' 2 ^suaflv sn^ TfT with , cobwebs; lined with fine rootlets and 
K e h d troraa fork at the ° { * “’=»> 
end wherT a U h a U nd y 1"°' buff l'" w . hite ’, darker towards the larger 
fndiWTnct zone mmUte> C '-? ucIed ’ brownish markings form an 
(June) Breeding-season: October to January and on to May 
9. Black Honey-eater Myzomela nigra Gould 
ni-gra —L., niger, black. 
Dzstribution.—Over the inland portions of the Australian continent. 
Notes. Apparently nomadic. In flocks, frequenting the flowering 
