38 AUSTRALIAN ZOOLOGY. 
laid eggs from the pouch of the echidna in the third week of August, 
1884. When fresh laid the egg is of an opaque white colour, 
destitute of calcic salts in the shell. Asa result Mr. Caldwell came 
to the conclusion that monotremata are oviparous—this had been 
before asserted by some naturalists and denied by others, as Sir R. 
Owen, but never clearly proved. Coincident with this discovery, 
but in another colony, other evidence was forthcoming. Mr. Haacke 
found on 25th August, 1884, an egg-shell, the remains of a rotten 
egg in the pouch of an echidna, and showed it to the Royal Society 
of South Australia on 2nd Sept. The proceedings of the Royal 
Society, Tasmania, record that in October, 1888, the horse of Mr. 
Fletcher, in the Campbell Town district, put its foot into an unseen 
hole. On the rider dismounting and putting his hand into the hole, 
he found a porcupine, which he lifted out, when an egg crapped 
from the animal and was broken in its fall, exhibiting an embryo 
animal. He presented the broken shell and the partially-developed 
animal to the museum. This fully corroborated the evidence 
adduced by Mr. Caldwell. 
Fossil. remains.—Remains of monotremes were first found in a 
fossil state by Mr. Krefft. A few bones were found in the Wel- 
ling valley caves; they are exhibited in the Sydney Museum. The 
bones are certainly those of a terrestrial and fossorial genus, and 
probably identical with echidna, but greatl larger than the living 
species. A portion of a humerus was found in Darling Downs, also 
indicating the former existence of a gigantic monotreme in 
Australia. 
———— = 
Rosk-BREASTED Cockatoo—Cacatua roseicapilla. 
Description.—The crown, occiput and wings are tinged with 
rose colour, the basal portions of the latter are bright rose colour ; 
the cheeks, a collar surrounding the neck, the throat and chest are 
bright rose colour, edged with whitish grey; the under surface of 
the shoulders is rose colour; the wings and the upper part of the 
back and tail are light grey ; the quills and the end of the tail are 
dark grey ; the lower part of the back and the upper tail coverts 
are whitish; the under tail coverts are light grey. Specimens 
ry considerably in the depth and richness of the colouring of the 
reast. 
Habits.—Like the common white cockatoo it associates in large 
flocks, and where agricultural operations are conducted it proves an 
equally troublesome neighbour. A flight of these birds is a beauti- 
ful sight, as their movements are simultaneous—one moment dis- 
playing the silvery grey back, and then, by a sudden change, 
ringing the rich pink of the under surface in view. It possesses 
great powers of flight. It is very hardy, and will live for many 
years in a cage. umbers are captured for the English and Euro- 
pean markets, as there is but little difficulty in the transport, this 
bird bearing the sea voyage better than almost any other, 

