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THE JOURNAL OF THE
Tasmonlan Field Naturalists' (Iub.
Vol. 1. APRIL, 1907.
No. 1.
CYurselves.
The Tasmanian lField Naturalists' Club,
having been in existence for over two
yea.rs, has felt the need of a journal of
its own, and at the annual meeting in
Sel!tember, lHOB, it was decided that such
a iot:t'nal should l>e issued, under the
title of "The Tasmanian Naturalist," the
first numbw of which now appears. One
c02Y of the journal is to be issued f,'ee
to all members whose subscriptions have
been paid; for those not belonging to
the Club a small chm.'ge is to be made.
The journal is intended to deal with
History in its widest sense, par-
ticular, but not exclusive, attention be-
ing paid to subjects of Tasmanian in-
terest.
It is hoped in time that desc.riptions
of new f.orms of life will appear in its
pages, but fCl' some time at least the
articles will be of a more Cl' less popu-
lar chal'acter, and under arrangement
with the 'p,'oprietors of "The Weekly
Courier," many of them will first appeal'
in that widely-.read journal.
Members and Othl'S inte['ested are in-
vited to contribute, addressing all com-
munications to the editor. Thirty copies
of their papel's will be supplied free to
all authors of articles of mOl'e than one
paO'e. Unless for special reasons papers
not exceed 3000 words in length,
and under 2000 aor'e preflled. Shori
paragraphs win also be acceptable.
[Previous to the establishing of our
journal the following papel's were pub-
lished fCl' the club:-
The Black-Headed Honey-'Eater (with
dI'awing), A. E. Brent.
Tasmanian Orc'hids (with drawings), L_
Rodway.
Club's Camp Out photographs),
E. A. Elliott.
Tasmanian Ferns, L. Rodway.
The Sc,.-ub Tit, A. L. :Eutlee
The Myrtaceae of Tasmania (with
photogoraphs), L. Rodway.
'l.96e :Jl of :R,emarJ(.able Jnseets.
By ARTHUR M. LEA, F.E.S., etc. (Government Entomologist,.
Amongst the different orders of in-
sects there are many kinM that are
remarkable for their shapes or transfor-
mations. But of the various orders there
is not one which contains species of such
queer forms, or in which the thanges are
so singular, as in the homoptera. Litt'e
attention, however, is paid thIS order
hy the majO'rity of naturalists, 'except
hy those officiall.y employed to deal with
( 1 )
pests, the reasons being th;'tt the
jority of the species are of small
size, .of sober colours, .and fre-
quently difficult to presel'Ve. The
orde.' is comparatively small in num-
bers, and very fortunately lOO. >ls few 0';
them are useful to man, and many are
high'y destructive. The aphides (includ
ing vastatl"ix," so remark
able on account of its life history ami
THE TASMANIAN NATURALIST.
for the immense damage it has done to
the vineyards of Europe), frogspittle in
sects, froghoppers, cicachs (frequently
but erroneously known as locusts) Ian
tern bugs, lerps, and scale insects ("coo
dJae"), all belong to this 'Jrder. It is
only!, however, with the bst famiLy that
we are now concerned. The se,tle insec to
o2riv'e their name from the tact tho1 t
a great many of the species appear like
smaH scaly excrescences on the leave5,
bark, or fruit of various plantl'>. Th",
family may be divided into
sections, the first consisting vf specil's
which retain their legs during the whole
of their life, the second consisting of spe
des in which the legs ar4) lost by one
sex anc} scaly coverings (entire'y separat.
cd from the insects but serving to pro
tect them) are formed, and the third in
which the legs mayor may nut. be lost,
and which live within WOOcly!
they cause to grow upon the stems ur
1eaves of the plants attacked. To tll"
first section belong the mealy bugil,
cochineal insects, and the cottony cushion
scale; the latter was accidentally intro
duced to California and elsewhere.
and did enCL'mous damage befcn:l
it was kept in check by the in
troduction of its natura' enemies. The
cochineal insect is one of the very few
uoeful inseds of the group; t'!i) mealy
bugs are nearly! aU destrnctivp., but a fclw
of the root feeding s'pecies scrYe as
"'COWS'" for various kinds of ants. To
this also be10ng the "paradise"
fiies, a group of insects of which the
males are very bean biful. with t wo fine
wings, bright red eyes and long tails
of shining, glassy! filaments. The iemales
are much larger, of a dark brown colour,
and without wings and tail. In
fact, in the whole of the family
the females are hlways wingles5, and
the males ,winged, when fullg.rown;
with some of the species the mllles Yast1y
cXlCeed the females in number, whilst in
others the males have never b .. en seen.
In the stcom) section many ot the ac
cepted definitions of insects do not ho'd
good, for the larva is frequently of
mOi'e perfect shape and with more senses
than the adult insect. The section con
tains more species than the others com
bined, ana the members of it aJ e known
It, "armoured" scales, one of them Jeing
only too wen known to Tasmanian or
lChardists; this is the introilu{!ed mussel
("Myltilasipis pomorum"). The fe-
males of this species lay egg" whie!l
are rl"otected against other insects
and the weather by covedng scales;
f.rom the eggs in the summer
,aictive 'Larvae ha!bcbed; these larvae
ea.;)h possess six \egs, a pair of antell:la'e,
anc) a pair of compound ey!es. In this
stage the sexes cannot be "distinguishea:
(2 )
After scurr.ying over the plant attacked
(usually the :apple) in search of a suit
ab'le place to settle, one is selected, and
the larva inserts its rostrum in to the
hark or fruit to suck np Its juooes; it
grows rapidly, forming a proteeting
over itself as it Oavelops, and com
pletely its legs, eyes, and f.,ntenna'e;
with the female these are never regained.
The male not only regains them, but oh
tains a pair of wings as we],; he loses
his sncking apparatus, howev,<r, whilst
this is retained b.y the female throughout
her life. The ,body of the winged male
is divwed into the usual parts of a ma
ture insect,. namely, the ilearl, thorax,
anc) abdomen; whilst the mature femail!
has the head and thorax ill one piece,
and not separated from
abdomen. It might be that the
f8males of this Section being wingless
ano legless, no insects would be less liahle
tc, be transported, but several of them
haye become acclimatised practically! all
o\'er the world. In West Austra\ia
females of one species of this group Ii've
fully half an beneath the IJark, theIr
only communication with the air being
by means of a long glassy ti'lrtment or
tail, which is usually first notIced 011
account of its having a small drop of
necta .. \ike substance oozing from it:;
tip. Many species of all three sections,
however, giYe off a substance known u;;
"hone.y dew," :)nd is greatly re
lished by ants anc) other insects. The
spEcies of the third or gallformmg se'!'
tion haye their hea'dquarters In Austra.
lia, and all of them are highly re
markable. By pnncturing the leaves
or stems of trees they cause peculiar
woody growths or "galls" 'to form, an,J
these growths are constant in appear
ance. Thus in the genus "BraehysceJis";
(the species of which at'tack the eucalypti)
one gall is about six inches III Jength,
and supported by a long thin stalk, an
other is pearshapea, another apple
shaped, another has the crown
shapecl, and so on. One specIes is greedi
ly eaten by the blacks of :--:,)rthWe8t
Australia. In the majority of spcies
the gall eontains but one chamber, but
several contain two. With some the
male gan grows on the female gal1, in
others the female galls grow on twigs,
whilst the ma1es grow in dense mush
roomshaped masses on leaves. In one
species th'i) gall is formed in the sob\
wooel itself. The insects themselves
usually aMe to moYe up and down With
in the galls. The male on his
wings leaves his gal1, bnt the female
for life. She eithpr prod.uces
living young or dies full of "ggs, the,se
eventually! hatch ont, but in either casp.
the young \eave hy an opening at the
top of the gall.
THE TASMANiAN NATURAList.
Perh,ps the most remul'ku1Jle of all tee
gallforming insects are the spc:-ies of
FrelWliia (a genus named after the genial
Victorian entomologIst), the species oi
wlrlch attack the casuarin<ls, or she-oaks.
There are two sl)ecies of this genus
known, one from where it ap-
pe:ll's to be very rare)',' the other from
Victorb anu Tasmania. The latter spe-
des is known as Frenchia casuarinae, anti
,frequently kills branches of she-oaks. Its
larvae, when y,onng, are in .lppe-arance
1I1uch like thos(' of other members O!
Ltluily, being prov'Med with three pall's
ot a p:1ir of compound ('.Yes, am.! a
p..tiJ' of antennae. AHer leaving
A-La.rva of Frenchia casnarinre, with legs, eyes and antennre, aud capable of free motion.
B-Second stagll as enclosed in gall, and having lost legs, eyes and antennre.
C-Third sta.ge.
D-Fourth or wadlikll stage, with removable cap.
( 3 )
THE TASMANIAN NATURALISt.
E- The enclosed gall insect of Cylindrococcus.
mother's gall, they wander over the bark,
and finally settle !lown; here they .. ause
galls to form, the galls in time com-
covering them. The gRlls con-
tinue to gr'ow, anI(} eventual\y freJm the
mialle of each a cyllildrical woody
growth appears, which may be readily
detached. Meanwll'lle changes have been
bkittg pllWe in the insect itsrlf; it.
its legs, antennae, anc\ eyes, an,1 even
mouth parts (henceforth n('elving its
nourishment through Its skin b;y the pro-
cess known as osmosis), and appears
at! a lit tic of
ir:regula,r tihape, but having a ,;l1Ial!
node at its 'lOwer cnd, al1Ll a of thick
tail at oue side. As growth
the tail becomes thinner an.:} increases iu
lellgth, extending almost the wtLOle length
of the cylindrical woody grJwt!l; its boi-
tom also bec(}tllcs :llmost shapeli,
but still w'ltl:J the small'wde, which i"
fitted into a depression of the wood; it i;,
l\mbtless at. this stage 1ha t rrairillci
h!.kes Lltter on the taH collapse,
bfllods over, allll appears fltte,l to .a
movable c.:1P, which is jolne,] to the body
bJl an irregular suture-much aa the su-
tures between the bones of the human
skull. The bOl2y itself is now shaped
l-lke a wad, and on removing the cap the
top can be seen to Ibe completely cov-
ered -by fine concentric ring" with a ,small
opening in the centre, from which the
young can nearly always be seen
escaping. A heavy coating of white
mealy substance is always attached
to the walls of the enclosing galls,
whilst the insects are healthy, but
when these are attacked by para-
sites, at! is often the case, this sub-
stallJCe dolsappears. When full fed, the
10 wer portion of the gall is completel)1
fillec\, and doubtless gives to the insect
its peculiar wac\-like shape. The trees
attaY.)ked by these insects are often
killed by them, and the gaHs are fre-
quently to be seen in r.umbers.
Common as the females are, t.Jle Imlle
never yet been Klescribed, anJ: has pro-
b'-tbly never been seen, although it has
ke-enly been searehet't for; it will prob
ab!.y be mueh the same, however, as llIallY
of the famUy. Brieflv sUllllued
up, the life histoQl of tltis i!1i:ect, 1'1'0-
b'lllly the lllOst remarkable III AU8tr,,'.ia.
if not in the whole worlel, i" as follolVs: '
1. llJl'll in possession of six legs two
cO.lllpounci eyes, a pair of ,1lItcllnae', \tne!
WIth mouth puts.
2. Att:tcks bark, and ca'lSl'S (;Oi!lpOuncl
galls to form.
3. G:.lius a tail, but loses 'H;; jegs, ll!l'
tcnnae, eyes, al1c\ mouth part,'; at thhl
sbge completely cut off from tile outer
all'. From now on w,1I'ch nourisheci
through its skin.
. 4. Again changes Its shape, greatly
llJcreases the length of its tail, be-
coming connected with the o11ter a4r.
5. Again changes its shape bil becomes
semi-detached from the body, the upper
surfa.ce of which is marked by numerQUS
concentric rings.
6. Females aibundant; male unknQwn.
THE TASMANIAN NATURALIST.
Another highly remarkable genus, the
spEcies of which also form gnlls on she,
oaks, is OylindrocOlCCus, Ihc spec-les of
this genus are fairly numerous III Aus-
tralia and Tasmania, but of is the
male known, In a common Tasmanian
speries the height of abSlll'dity in
shape appears to he After
the first stage the insect is not fixed, but
capable of moving up and u)wn Us
gall. It h:-ls no rostrum, and l'eceives aI'
its nourishment through its (in part
of the stage it tc be at-
bched by! the whole top :-If ha head to
the b,lse of the gal1). The antennae
o,re present, hut are little more than two
feebly pointed projections. There are
no eyes. There are three l)-"irs of
each apparently without claws (few other
'lnsects with legs are known in which
theSe are not terminated by ('laws); tile
front pair are the anr! are nar-
row and produced; the hind l)lil- are much
larger, and are bladc\3r like, whilst the
micld1e pair are mlllCh larger still The
front and hind legs appear to be corn
of only one part, insti'l1d of five
(coxa, 'tl'OOhantar, femur, tibia, and! 'bar-
sus), whilst the middle are composed of
two. The legs moreover, alter 4n pro-
portion, as the insect grows. The hinder
parts of the body are c\othcci with lonct
golden hairs. The whole insect, hOW':
e,-er, is so densely clothed wit'h
whitish meal that until this is re-
moved the different parts cannot be
clearly seen. A r,emarkahle feature of
this 1nsect is the fact that when at-
tackecl hy parasites it appears to grow
much more rapidly, and to a much larger
size than when healthy. The proof of
this is that in the galls deod coccids may,
frequently be seen that have become
bloated to four or five times their nor-
mal size, and filling the galls for
the greater part of thdr, length; when
SoO bloated the legs can be traced with
great <ilfficulty on'ly. The of this
species is narrow, about '1n inch in
length, and tapers to ,a point; in ,colour
It is green, hut light brown at the top
and bottom; at the bottom soole-liko
growths are formed, so that the whole i.1l
remarkably \ike the young of the
tree -on which it grows. Another gall
formed by a species of tMs genus is so
unlike the work of an insect lio much
like thJt of a part of the tree itself that
H "deceived a botanist, who described it
,aa the fruit of the tree. The drawings
(published in the "Courier" of March 9)
show va rIous stages in the life histories
of these insects. (a) Larva of
Casuarinae, wtth legs, eyes, and antennae,
and capable of free motion. (b) Second
stage, as enclosed in gall, and hl\ving
IObt legs, eyes, and antennae. (c) Tbird
stage. (d) Fourth, or wad-like stage,
with removable cap. (e) The enclosed gal!
in;,ect of lOylindrooOOclls'. ,
January Meeting.
The monthly meeting was held in the
Masonic Hall on January 21st. Mr. S.
Clemes presided, and there was a good
attendance.
Miss D. Kea'mode and Master Wm.
Ke.rmode were elected membel"S of the
Club.
Mr. A. M. ILea, Government Entomolo-
gist, showed two cases of beetles, etc.,
obtained by him at King- Island, and de-
scribed some of them. He also men-
tioned that some bones of the extinct
emu had been taken by -him. Mr. Mor-
ton gave some infcl'mation regal'ding the
bones that are to be found there. Two
clutches of eggs of the Brush Wattle-
bird (Acanthochoera mellivora) were
exhibited by -Mr. E. A. ElIiott, and de-
scdptions given of the nests and nesting
gI'ounds of these birds. Some eggs of
one of the Cat-bi.rds of Australia were
shown by Mr. H. Pottenger.
Mr. A. MoL"ton, Directc[' of the Tas-
manian Museum, gave an account of hi;;
recent trip to the islands of the Pacific.
(5 )
He stated that he went to New Zealand
from Hobart, and thence_ to the islands,
l1!any of which appear to be in a very
prosperous condition, especially those
undea' British contL-ol. Fruits, such as
oranges, bananas, and pineapples, aore
grown in large quantities, and lII:e very
}Cl'ofitable, while the c'hief industry of the
islands is drying for copra,
w,hich is worth about 1t25 per ton. The
llatives are well developed, and good
workers, their efficiency in the manage-
ment of boats in the sud and loading of
vessels being quite remalkable. Desc.rip-
tions of the scenery were also given by
the lectucer.
Dr. Geral'd Smith then showed a num-
ber -of microscopic lantern slides of poly-
zoa, hydrozoa, and radiolaria, mounted
at t'he Marine Biological Station at Jer-
sey. At the conclusion the chairman
the following lette.r:-"Hobaa-t,
21st January, 1907. lOear 'Sir,-The news
of your departure fJ'OIm 'MlllcmgstlllS bas
been received very regretfully by the
members of this Club, 'and we desire to
THE TASMANIAN NATURALIST.
express our thanks for, and have placed
on recor.'d, the whole-heau,fed in tl'est
you have taken in the ,club's welfare ..
Y.ou kindly undertook t'he chairmanship
of the Club at its inception, and it", pre-
soent successful standing is due in latgc
to the scientific ability you dis-
played as its leader. The members will
long remember your usefulness, and hopt:
that in the wider circle you return-
ing to thefcL'mation, g,['owth, and scien
tific endea VOUl'S of the Tasmanian Field
Naturalists' Club will be a source of
pleasure to you in hours of revfL'ie.-We
at'e, dear sir, yours very truly, on behalf
of members, Samuel Clemes (chairman).
E. A. Elliott (hon, secretary). To
Gel'ard Smit'h,' 'Esq., :lI.R.C.S" L.S.A.,
etc., 'Hobm:t."
Dr. Smith eXf['esse(l his pleasure at
receidng this letter from his fellolY,
members, and said he regretted very
much leaving them, and envied them the
beautiful collecting gl'ounds of Hobart.
His connection with the Club had been
very enjoyable, and if he had been of
any'service 'he lYas glad.
Mare6 Meeting.
The monthly meeting of the Club was
held in the Masonic Hall on the 7th
March. M.r, J. Edgar Smithpl.'esided, and
there was a good attendance.
Ma'. P. Lockwood, Nile, was elected a
member of the club.
. A specimen, gL'owing in a, pot, of a fern
new to Tasmania was shown by }1r. L.
Rodway, Government IBotanist, sent from
Duck: N.E. Tas., by Mr. K. Harri.
son. Fronds Ol' leaves only had pre-
viously been sent, and had already beel!
exhibited befn'e the Club, when Mr. Rod-
way ,had conside.red it to be Polyp odium
Hillii, but with whoIe plants to hand he
recognised it as p. pennigerum, hithdo
only found in New Zealand, and now
making two species of ferns found in
Tasmania and New Zealand and nowhere
else. The sewetary 'CMr. E. A. Elliott)
exhibited a live young black swan (Che-
nopsis atrata) about eight weeks old,
which he had obtained from tl1e Swan
River. This bird attracted considerable
attention fl'om those present, and made
its call frequently thl:oughout the
meetmg. It was eov! cd WIth down of
a d-a.rk fawn ;COIOD\', . the under surface
being lighter. -Mr. A. M. Govern-
ment Entomologist, exhibited some cases
of showy moths and butterflies
Queensland and India, and some. of the
8mallest beetles found in Tasm,tma.
J. E. Smith showed some curious "fault-
ed pebbJ.es" obtained from Scotland.
:Mr. A. L. Butler then read a paper
on "'HiL'd Life," written by Mrs. H. L.
Robel ts, of {Bmumaris, and which ap-
pears in this issue.
Dl'. F, N oetling, Ph.D., g,tYe a lee
h.ul'ette on the g'eological form,l tions at
South Brid<Yewater which he did in an
able avoiding the use of tech-
nical terms for the sake of the juniol'8,
and illustra:tirtg his remarks by mention-
in" occurrences which may he witnessed
day repL'csenting on a sm.tll sc,lle
the wCL'ks of Nature in fel'ming
sedimentary aocks.
Swan S600ting on t6e east of'l9asmania
By E. A. ELLIOTT, M.A.O.U.
An opportun'lty of the East
Coast to attend the opening daYl of
the swan shooting season (FN,ruary l)
was taken this ,year, .in ordH to see
how it was carried on. ,llld whether
the numbers of birds were greatly re.
duced, as reports from year to 'year
notify -that hundreds are ki!led then.
Leaving Hobart on Wednesday, January
29, Q,t 5 p.m., I cytcled through during
the night, when a full moon cle3r-
sky, helped to make the l"lde pJeasanr,
At LisdiUon, first traces of dn \Vn wen
noticed, and as the sky brightened more
and more in the east, birds began t,)
make -the']r preseIllCe known. One d
first of these was the little t::canthiza;
a crow, some (7.)sterops),
and crescent honeYl-eaters, [lIs:) soeemed
to be ear\y risoers. Ke'lvedon was
rea'Jhed at sunrise. This is well-known
to be the estate of Mr. Edward Cotton,
our leader at the dub's camp,
out at the Schoutens in 1 !lOO; and
through the kindness of his Roas the pr!!'
sent trip was nnd3rtaken. At 10 a,m.
THE TASMANIAN NATURALIST.
Mr. T,ylney Cotton, two others, and
myself started in a whaleboat to reaCll
the banks In Moulting Lagoof., 25 mile,
tlistant, where the shooting takps place.
In an hour or two we crossed the bar
of the Swan River, which W'l', Ililffieult
to filll\ as it is ahvaYl3 shallow and shif:.
its position. The tide runnin
6
strong'ly out of Moulting Lagoon t<ll'OU,-\,ll
the narro w channel of the rh-er, and as
the wind was unfavourable, "e had to
start rowing. Some little wily up the
river We landed, llnd had lUllch, a
much appreciated rest of ah,)ut. an hour,
when we got into the boat apain, and
after pulHng a little further were able
to sail. The Swnn River soon broadene,l,
but kept a tortuous channel. Vi ith ex:
tensive shal\ows first on onc ;j'Cie and
tensil'e shallows :first on one side and then
on the other. What numbers of bird9
were to be seen now. Flocks if twentl'.'
forty, or fifty whlte-frontet} hpl ons
continually from the mud lid,. Many
white-breasted, and a few S:lO',Y, oyster-
ca tdlers were there too, Will] sever,,1
species of petrels and term flying up
and down; the latter wer.) ('hIPfly th3
BllSS Straits' tern, and tw,) of the,(\
flying just ahead of the i, where
secured for specimens, on chs()
examination to be a young l)inJ and an
01(1 one; the latter meC1slH(,ci 4ft. Hn.
i,' full wing measurement, ani 11". Hill.
from tip of bi'll to end d I ail. T:le
former was slightly smaner; the feathers
0' the crown were not so .. larir as Wi;,:l
the m:lture bird, and it had br,)wn
OIL the tips of its wing coverb Tile light
hlulsh hodies, dark heao3, nn.1 bright;y
coloured bills of these gracf.fl;1 bire!"
make thpm very attractlvii'. d other
species noted were the four kinds sf
cormorants found in Tasman'.a. Amongiit.
their innumerable tl,e l'acific
and si\ver gulls consider thid j:iace witn
Lvour, the latter gUlls being- in big
flecks, am\ the harsh cries :>f Lhe form,lT
were constantly heard as they were
flying along. The P.aclfic gulls are
schedule'.) amongst our birds.
Ylet they worry the black swans con-
and aevour the-lr Pggs if th""
SWRns leC1ve their nests '11' a
time. Several hawks, both hrown and
swamp, were seen on the .vin(, and abo
a wedge-tailed eagle, while on a brg-e
dead tree were thrlle sea eC1"les toO'ether
with other birds. Several 'white oh-
jPlCts be seen in the whi<lh
my companions said were peHl.'ans, an.l
on 3pproach these were Identified as
such; although the ,boat C0'l!'(\ not g>t
close to them. When disturbeo they
flew Mgh in the nil', and the:r hrge
and throats could !be distinctly noticed, The
pelicans wel'e 'formerly mCl'e numerous,
and through being seen at certain pl'aces
( 7 )
more frequently than at others, tilt)
name Hocks" has bepn given to
a ridge stretching ncross dte mouth 01
Pelic,tn R1Y, one of the fir:;'; bays m,'t
in sailing up Swan River. P.,itlcan :Bety
is on the north-east side of Sw,)n .t{iye,,
a nU: here Ithe fll'si hlru:ik siwans (Chell'opiit
atr:lt.t) were seen. On other s'Jrle
of the ril'er a few miles higher ;]f;
is King's Bay, extenc\ing probably
for some four miles at lea&t. The
whole shor2 Lt King'" B.ty was lined.
fairlv thickly With swans and this bav
is o;ly one' of many these bIrds
are to be tc.und in numbers. Above
Kmg's Bay, .Moulting Lagoon narrows
somewhat, being perhaps two miles
broad, and here is the lower bank, 10
miles from the mouth of Swan River.
This bank is under about 18in. of water
-the navigable channel being in the
middle-ani the swan shooT,en line the
bank from shore to shore, standing in
the water. There were many wild ducks
of various species about, and very l:trge
flocks of them were seen. During tht:'
shooting on the opening day they were
flying oV<'l'he,ld, but very high, I1nd it
was said local residents had been shoo:'-
ing them for three or four weeks
viously to 'che opening of the season.
W'e camped on Thursday night a few
miles the bank above t,o.
and to save time on the following mom:
ing did not put up the tent, but spread
it out upon the ground, putting (lUl' rugs
upon 'this, ami covered all with the tent-
liy. III this way we were comfortab:e
('Hough, and had a fail' amount of reFit,
The crews of two othe.r boats were
camping near hy, while further up
\\,Cl'e more parties. Before daybreak
on Friday, Februl\ry 1, we were astir,
and were having the morning meal a.
the sun rose. 'Ve had to wait som"
little time for the o'thers, but made a
start shortly after 5 a.m. The bank
was some three miles away direct, yet
the winding channel made it at least
twice that dis'cance to row; while a little
way below the hank reports of several
guns drew our attention to a few figure.,
there, and one Ol' two dark objeel,s fall-
ing with a sphsh into the water told
tha'i; the first birds of the day were now
shot. At 7 our party reached
the 'bank, and, taking their guns and am-
munition, stepped into the water and
waded towards the shore, extending into
Q line across the and when the
remaining bOl'cs had come up there were
44 shooters stretched across at interval;;
of 80 yards or so. It was learnt on
arrival that one boat of "rousers" had
been sent up the bays, so our party "ent
another downstre-am, in the endeavour'
'to keep 'the swans continually on the
move, and, !lS they always keep above
THE TASMANIAN NATURALIST.
the water when flying (never acro,;"
land), they must pass over the "guns"
if the bird. flv in their direction. The
boats were taken back into the channel,'
and I stayell ill the whnleboat, as thut
wa;; 'dill be.t spot to witne.,s the pro-
ceedings frolll. Birds were already Jly-
ing-sometime. only one, or two and
three together; sometimes in flocks of
twenty 01' thirty. At other time,; they
would come in I'ery big flocks, and by
counting 100 birds, then taking an ap-
proximately equal number further along
the line. this total (:WO) being repeated
in like m:lllner, it would soon be found
that there were at least from 1000 to
1500 swans in one flight. The shooting
was mostly over by 1),30, and during thi .. !
time many flocks flew pas't, although it
was said la tl'" that the birds did not fly
well on that day. How many swans
there were on the wing (which only
formed a small part of the countless
l1umbers left in the bays) would 'be :JB-
yond my preilent mean., of even guessing
-suffice it to say '[here were many
thousands. When a flock is flying
the black bodies of "the swans do not
show out against the dark backgroun,l
of the hills, but only the large feat hen
of the wings (the primaries and secon'
daries), which are white, and the bird:;
are therefore c:llled in 'that part "whitll
wings"-a name I have not heard ap
plied to them elsewhere. Sometimes
these primaries are shaded with black.
and one qnite black swan has been seen.
On the other lmnd, two birds quite white
ha Ye been seen there-probably albino
specimens. Fnll-grown swans measure
about 4ft. Uin. from bill to end of tail
and 6ft. Gin. from tip to tip of out-
stretched wings, but t.hey vary consider-
ably. Actual measurements of two are:
-(a) Bill to tail, 4ft. 6in.; tip to tip of
wings, 5ft. Wirr.; each wing, 2ft. Hin.
(b) Bill to tail, 4ft. lin.; 'tip to tip of
wings, 6ft. 7in.; each wing, 2ft. llin. Ten
swans which were killed on this occasion
were weighed, and the average was
13.6lb., but they vary in weight from
IOlb. to nearly 201b' Mr. Cotton said
the he,wiest 'bird he had weighed
was ll)ilb. It is a curious fact
that 'the large primary feathers of these
swans come out at a slight pull, as in
stretching their wings to mea<Oure them,
widely differing in this respect from the
eagles, as some little e!fort is required
to extract the large flIght feathers of
the latter birds. The skin covering the
bills of swans is some'vhat loose, bright
red, with a pink top, the shade of colour
varying more or leas with the age of the
birrl. Soon after death the colour be-
comes rather dull. The peculiar rus'tling
noise of their wings makes the presence
of swans known as they fly overhead,
(8 )
and on turning to them their heads are
S3en to move first on one side and then
un the other, looking on the scene around
them and it is slllall wonder that their
eyes 'have a w'j\cl and startJ",l look. The
ronser sent down to Hay could
be seen in his white 'L1inghy, and
sion111y 'his yoice W,lS head as he
shouted at the b:.'ds, trying to
frighten them an,!l <Idve them to
the guns. }fost of them flew just
a little W'ly up or right do.vu the ba,y,
only, small parties (up to pl'l'haps 1000
birds) flying tow::.II'ds the shoott'l's, an']
sometimes these woulJ be wise enough
to turn back before gett'lng within range,
In rising, the swans flap along the sm
face for some distance be for" getting
support from the air, and the noise 01
their myriac) wings beating 1 he water
C.ln be imagined; it j, a loud
cIa pping of hands in ::l concert hall. It
was heard then from some n:'jies dis
tance, though when a large ll()('k is fired
at from short range with one barrel of
a gun am1 they! rise, the of tuelr
wings will drown the report ,)f the second
bane!. The swans always follow a
leadN' when flying, and this is usu
ally an old tough gander; there
fore the shooters let that one pas,;
and pilCk out other birds In 'tile flook,
the young and tender, which are not 80
blruck In colour. They are fired at fil';t
when nearly up to the line, ,1l1d if the
first barrel to stop a birtl, it ha.
the secon'd just as it pas'!es. T,leir
breast feathers may be thick and close,
but, the swift flight of the birf1 n.akes the
sl'ot hit all harder when fired at >\;
they are coming to the gun.,. Flyillg
with a good breeze they wiU travel at
the rate of 60 to 80 mile$ Cl!} hour, so
that it Is not of much use r,o fire when
they have passed. Those Lo
swan shooting aim some 15 ()r 20 feet:
ahead of the birds, A record was
established on this occasion by a
swan being shot 'dead at 120 yuds range
with 10 shot gun, and, a fio<'k coming
dawn just as the shooter h,ld wadl>d
out for this bire), he fired bcth oorre's
and secnred two others; 10!Lding quickly,
he fired again, and got hv') more, so
that when he reache'd the line hll
was towing five behInd him. I>,'t another
time five b'lrds were seen to drop
into the water simultaneously, What
endless ways they fal' through the air!
Sometimes when killed outright at a gooj
they hit the water wlth a loud
splash, making the spra,y fly, 50metlmes
turning over and over, or falling
as if they would shun the lV:lter. being
}(,th to leave their flight, anl\ W Could drop
slowly to the surface. The spent shot
dropped in the watel' with a constant
patter,sometimes hitting the boats or fall-
THE t ASMANiAN
ing round the sportsmen. When swans arC)
hit hard, but not killed outright, th3Y
'fiy with motionless, drooping
wings ever nearer the surh,!:. of the
,water, sk'lm over it for it l.)f,g way, am!
then settle, perhaps t wo a way,
am} swim fnrther on. I counted eIght ,)1'
tell that thus got out of i:'ight. It
was said that the 'rousers" when returJl-
ing woult! pick them up. At a.m. the
m'ljority ceased firing, amI {'mgged their
Imds to the boats. where t.hey were
divided-some shooters having been ouc-
dassed in guns and skill Intii Int a single
IYkJ, while several shot many nore th;lll
they needed, so that 110 dead birds were left.
!Jhiud, am} all were made 1We of. .Ln
this resped these sportsmen prov,;tl
true, and were (;(mient when
they had shot as many ;'inl..,as they
could dispose of, alrhough ktd
they ben bent upon by staYl-
ing the day, many monl must have been
killed. During the rest o! the SeaS)ll
th" few small p:uties that go tl>re <hoot.-
ing woulc\ not kill more than are
shot on the opening (hy. PHhaps eigh;;
lu.:ndrc[\ or one thousand even, are rilled
i'l each season. This mean, sa.)'.
ten taken out of a floek oC 500 as they
were flying past, am} those cn the w4ng
were a small part of the swat!s
left in the bays. Only t!le lower por-
tion of Moulting Lagoon traversed,
. anJ it is said that these oinlq are even
more numerous higher up. Unless the
number of sportsmen who go there >0
shoot largely irucreases, there does ,not
appear to be mruch likehh:)O'.! of
numbers of these birds being lroa teriallYl
NATURAList.
reduced by this means. There is a t'eaI da!l-
ge.r, llOwever, in the large numbers of eggs
tuken every season by fishermen an.,!
'tocal resilknts. Thousands lHe spnt t.,)
Melb(}urne confectioners. if VIgorQUS
action was taken in tHe I
penalty for having an egg ,)i the black
s wan in one's possession, then f,here would
certainly be no fear of t.his beautiful
hirJ. ever becoming extinct in Iasmania,
01' even becoming less in ;1'.HU ':le.s The
hirJs nest in the shallows, and cggs may
be found uurlng nine or !el:months of
the .year. On the way both "P and down
th,c river cygnets were secn. mnging in
age from a few weeks' old upwards.
When of full size the young" lVa!Js remain
for some time una b\e to Ii v as their
/Hght fe'lthl's are the last to "graw; they
are most prized for the tabh, if
they can be obtained when at this stagp.
In moulting, the primaries to be
shed at the one time, so th.J,t, the birds
are unable to fly; these :lI'e term.:>d
"moulters," and it is a common pract1ce
to row or sail after these to capturr,
them. Parents of youn'>' bir"s bUild
[bring the open season ar"e not shot.
they keep with their young, :lnd do not
fly far from them, even on Lhe approach
of a boat. They do not job, until labr.
the large flocks which are "hot at 'durin<r
the' Illrives, and ,ue lCertainly left
by the sportsmen, The return trip
commencd about 10 o'clock ar.d a favour
aMe wina enabled Us to most of tho
way. For seveml miles after lea vin3' the
hank dead birds were occ>lsiou(llly seen,
and one or two were picKC;\ up, the
,others being left for later boats. About
A YOUNG BLACK SW AN (Chenopis atrata).
(9 )
THE tASMANiAN NATURAlist.
foul" or five miles down the water was
seen to be covered with feathn's.
which Paocific gulls had torn frOII, a C.YP n,
Wl:;hing to capture a 'Wgnet, one
of a PHty of three or I.Jur swimming
hi front of the boat, was singlec\ out,
ailll as it was l'Ilpidly gaineo upon, tb.u
bird was soon lifted from the water
placed in the boat. On lJP,i:lg' brought
to Hoklrt it became eXJCeildinglYl tame,
and eviucntly enjoyed life, in jpss than
fh'c weeks ga'lning in weig1lt from lib
IOoz. to over 41h. When callght it
8upposet! to be about four weeks o'td,
and a photo of it (reproullcet! in the
illustrated section) was a\ ce!,
aftr. The billsano eyes of young [wans
ore bbek, but change to ret! htnI. When
the feathers are plucked from a black
swan it tllen looks snowy white,
the o:1own not being attached to the
feathers but separate. With the young
capture'cl bird it was noticed that the
nest down with which many youngoirds
are 1C0vered on hatcMng from the shdl
t!id not give place to feathers, which Is
tiw general rule, but to the true down,
ant! the feathers appear later. This down
was not white, but a fawn colour. We
arrived at Kelve(\Jn again I'n rioay
afternoon with some of the swans. _ne
folio wing day I started on the return
to Hou:ut, after having witilessed in
t hose large flocks of bi:,.1s one
of the finest s'lghts of its Kind, and long
may it remain.
1:Ji sf of :1Ilembers.
*Anthol1v E :-;; lWzabeth and Ihvpv
stre;t's,
*Atkins, C. J . Audleysheet, Hobad.
*Atkins, W. N.,
Atkinson, R. H., Ft'iends' High
Hohad.
BaylltoJl, H. J., Bo,t Vl,;ta-roatl. North
Hobart.
*Beattie, J. W., Elizahethstreet, Hobaort.
Beedham,11iss, vV'arwicks:tr.eet, Hobart.
Bcedh,tlll, Lo, Walwick-street, Hobart.
"'Bell, 11iss, Lindisfarne.
"'Black, R. A., Dept. Agriculture, Hobart.
Boxall. J., clo 1lessrs. Bn'gess P, os.,
Hob:trt. -
*Brpnt, A. K, Ferry.
HHH\'lle 11 , F. L.. Stoke,trpet, Hob:U't.
"'Hutler, A. L., 11ul'ray-street, lIok. t.
Cato. \Y. C .. I.'loUds D l\eystreet.
Ch"]llllell, H. C. D .. Swanf;treet. Hob:ll't.
"'{,ll'mes, S .. Le"lie Hou,.;('. Ne,,' Town.
*Colbollrn, H .. 1., ('oullcil of .\gl'icult:r-e,
Hobmt.
"'Conlon, A., COllncil of Agriculture,
Hob'll't.
"'Cook, J. V .. D:lln:1.iustrcpt, Hobart.
Crook all, W., Smithstreet, Hoba.rt.
D'EllHlen, F.ank, 1ft. Stuart, Hohart.
D'Emden, Thos., Mt. Stuart, Hobart.
Dove, H. Stuart, DeYOllport West.
Duthoit, N., Bellerive.
*EII!ott, O. H., Hohat"t.
*Elhott, E. A., High-street, Hobal't.
*Gibson, Dr. G., Macquariestreet, Hobart
( 10 )
"'Ha.rcourt, Alec., rystreet, Hobart.
Hardcastle, :cr'. C., 1Iltcquariestreet.,
Hobart.
*Harrison, M. \V., Glenrr:chy.
Ha'vey, R. C., Hobarl.
Irvine, }liss, Friends' High School,
Hobart.
Johnson, J. A., Training 'College, Hobart.
*J ohnston, R. 111., LlS.O., Government
Statistician, Hobart.
Ke.rmode, D., "Oorol1<1.," B:lttery
Point, Hohad.
Kermode, W., "Corona," B_lttu'y Point,
Hobart.
*Le:1, A. )1., Counedl of Agriculture,
Hobart.
Le1, A. ?IT.. }Iu:. :ly-street, Hob:llt
Lockll'ood, P .. Nile.
*Lord, Clive, Sandy Day, Hob'lrt.
LCJdder, 11is5, Elpltinroad,. Launceston.
)l'.-\Ui,;ter, Miss, Friends' High School,
*)i'Donald, B. K, 1)1 Brisbane-street,
Hobrr:t.
W. L., Forest Hill. San<1iol'd.
*)'faxwell, E., Stone Buildings, HObart.
*}Iorton, A., Tasmanian 11u5eulll, Hobart.
"Nair'n, C. C., PUI-k'street, Hobad.
"Nairn, ]\of!"'. C. C" Park-street,
':'Nairn, Miss, Pu.:kst,reet, Hoba!:t.
Naden, Miss, Quaylestreet, Hobart.
Naden, N., Quaylestreet, Hobart.
Nicholls, H. M., Garden Island Creek,
Hnon.
Noetling, Dr. J., Sandy ay, Hobalt.
;i
I
THE TASMANIAN NATURALIST.
*Penny, G. C., Lands Dept., Hobart.
Pies se, 'K L., BaY'I'o,td, Hobart.
"Philp. J. E., Battery Point, Hobart.
Pitfield, L., Glebe Town, Hobart.
*Pitman, C. A., Landi! Dept., Hobart.
""Pitman, C. B., ,Lands Dept., Hobart.
*Pottenge,l', H. Lo, 265 Dav'eY'str-eet,
Hobart.
Pretyman, E. H., Sitll'ily ,Bay, Hobart.
*Rpid, A. R., LiIerpool,treet, Hobiut.
Roberts, M,s. H. 1.., Beallmaris, Battery
Point, Hobart.
Robey, }fiss, Fed'Talstreet, Hobart.
"Rod way, L., Ylacquariestreet, Hobad.
Simpson, T. C. Holebrook Place, Hobart.
"*8im80n, Aug., High-st,reet, Launceston.
"'Smith, Dr. G., London.
"'Smith, J. E., Friends' High School,
Hobart.
Stephens, A. Lansdowne Crescent,
'Hobart.
Tarleton, J. W., Sandy Bay, Hobart.
Tlib." It, jun., :\Iurraystreet, Hobart.
Walpole, S., Union Bank, Hobad.
WalkE(', B. Rtndy Bay, Hobart.
*Watchorn .. A . .0., Battel:y Point, Hobart.
Wa.l'dman, J., Botanic Gardens, Hobart.
Watson, H., Sandy Bay, Hobart.
*vYhite, .\., IBroomhill, Mangalore.
Woolley, C. E., Lindi,.sfarne. _
Wright, C., Trinity Hill State School,
Hobart.
t96e :J3reeding J-{abits of:J3ronzewing
By MARY G. RDBERTS, M.A.S.E., M.A.D.U.
(The bird", inre de,alt with are our oom-
mon hronz,ewing (lPhaps chalcoptera)
and) ,th:e crelSlted br.mwewinlg of New
Sou.th Wale" (Dcyphaps lophotes).)
Jn my aviaries, whn'e these
iuv,e been kept ,se'as,on af,ter ,s;ea,son under
rxa.ctly ,the same 'coonditiol1S, I find the
time of year in they begin to
lJUilll, and the period nesting -last,;,
vdry consid,erably; influenced, no
by ,the severity ,or 'obherwise of weather
condition:;,. 'E1or inJSltance, in 1904 they both
began t,o lay in July and! .A:ugust, and
ooth s'alt five times a,nd earried on hreed-
ing O'peroa,tjoILs until ,quite the end of
Ma rcll. J,t is alrrrO's,t needLesls ,to say that
all the eggs were nll't haotd .. ed, nor all
the young I-ea red; in one inls,tance a pair
of ,QUI' .own bronzewing;s fell from tlhe
nest and d!ied when a few days .old, and
d.rrot.her time one egg was laid and for
gak"m. Some uuto'W,ard circumst,ance
011&0 befell thecre.s'ted variety, and
l
, Lram
my eXlperi,ence, I c.onclude tha,t three
times n,e,st'ing in one season would be the
normal .or outsiue number. In ,the Iol
lO'wiuO' veal' (l'!)05) O'perations commenced
,tiIJ e':'a;lie'r, /lnd, to my ,surprise, O'n June
Zi I. found! egg.s in the neist .of tbe New
SoUtil Wales emst'ed, and! ,twO' day:;, later
in that of our common brO'nze-wing. There
many disappointments in avicultn:e,the
bronze wings deserted the nest
owing ItO being disturbed.dluri.ng ,sonie al-
tenvtion:;, -to the aviary, and ,the Y'0ung of
our bTonzewings hatched out only to fall
vict.ims ,too 'U sudden and ,severe ehange of
tempera,ture. The hen nested again at
th'e end! of AUgUSit, but on: ,l6
heavy fall 'ofS'now wa.s ,responsible for
(11 )
Ll1e of one squab; next morning the
other died" and ,the foUDwing moming
the mo,tller-a matter of keen regret to
me, as during her ,short aruCb iruterClSlting
life iHdJ engraf.ted very much pleal:lure
intO' mine. The last .se'a"O'.n (1906) wa"
mnlb later ,than usual, .owing ,to the
frequent. andJ intermittent OIInowstorms
whi,:h fell upon the mountain up ito the
beg:nning of Decembe.r. The bird.s ,show-
2d HO sign of ne,sting until October, and
it was X ovember befO'I1e the first 'COlmmon
bl'onz{'wing Wia3 ,ha,tched; It,hey were not
only' later ill! hegi.nning, but earlier in
leaving .O'ff, .and by ,of Nlovem'bec
y!tl'ie,ty had lfinished, ,the result being
tw'O young frO'm the 'fiI1st nesting, and
om, frO'm the s'econd,; .the cres,ted variety
lud: be'gu.IlJ somewha,t earlie.r. It ha,,,, b&..'n
it gl'ea,t pl'ea.sn.re t'o me watching tl'Je nesli;
!ng O'pera-tioILs,of ,truese two -varieties
being carried on s,imultaneously, aIUlIoucrh
denizen;! of d'iffe'l'Cll't states. In 5pewk.
ing to cOll'ntry re,side.nts, ,they invm'ialily
tell me that Ghrisltm!LS is the he.st time
't'oobtain yO'ung buJt I 'fail till' a'gree
)YitllL them, a,s the ra,et" which J Ihaye
pl'oYe the oppo.site. They may
,",ee more birdl, about during
tin t tim2, as, doubtle,ss eiUl3r foOl' work
lH' plp ... sure ithey ram:ble in the hush
ll1uch more frequently in ,summer tha<t
dulill'g' the cold '\"ea.tiller, and, judging
by my eXlperience, probably many of Ithe
('at lyh.l,tched do Il!ot survive through the
weathe.r. Af,ter lutching, ,thE'
young are Ior some time well pr.o,tected
in the d3y by the preSJence of bo,ull bird,s
or: tin ne Sit, whO' are mOl:lt attentiv,e to
their dll'ties; but when night comes and the
retire,s ,to his perch, the ben, owing
,
I
i
THE TASi\1ANIAN NATURALIST.
the rapid of ,thoe squabs, is no
tonger able to pwtect Ithem hom t'he
coM; hence I have found Ithem d'ead in
the llorningon more than one occasbon.
f ba-ve .an idiea Ithat by removing !the
young 'ones to Ithe hous'e during toe
lIigM, when a sudd\:!n tall ,of temperature
t,ake.s pllwe,these d'isa,Sltrousre,sults might
00 arverted. Ithese two varieties.
[ have many othe'rs, induding the brush
bI'o,nze!wing ,(IPlmps e.legane), i,g now
almost which is ithought
by English aviculturists much handwm('r
than the '(lommoner variety, ,the W,onga-
'Vonga I(ll,eooo,;jaroia pieata) olf !New
S.outh 'Wiales, w'ell known for its ,size
and a,s hein:g tbe posse,ssor of fie.S1b;
the lParltridge iboonze\wiing (Geophaps
SoCript,a), commonly called the squatter-
the only remaining white-fiesh Y.ariety,
and considered by Gould ,the most deli-
ciolls of all pigeons; the iplumed ground
dove (IGe'oIplu:ps. :plumi'fera), the la,tter one
of the mos!t a,ttractive .of bird,,; hoth of
thpse breed upon thc gronnd, and
believed to he a connprtillg" linl;:
be'tween the partridge and ,tIN) pigeon;
the young leaves the nest, if not a,s ealrly
a,s quail, much eRlrlier ,than pigeons d'o;
t'he 1'it'tle green ,pige'on '(Ohalocophal);; chry-
.of New .south Wales, a cbarm-
inogbird of .small size, w1tb lwi:ght green
,vings and Vina{le.ous breasit,' also the
.Tava neckLace and white Barbarv doves.
Botb t,hese varieties have bred ';'ith me,
,md I hope to 'acclima,t1se the fDrmer,
f{)r it is evidently hardy, is now very
common about the swburhs of Syd,ney,and
constantly ItO he heard CODing from
the pine The bird mar aho be
lIfen ,about the J.a,wns, or often fped,ing
,vioth the .sparro'Ws from any .seedh{)x
that is near alt hand. I had Un illli.s-
iortune ,to lose '" pair {If crowned New
Guinea pigeons (Goura ID"A,J'Iwrtisi), eplp
bm,ted' bOlth for size and beauty. This
pig'eon i.s of a light ;s11a te with
rich maroon hreast. Otber di,stingui,shing
tea,tnres ,aTe br:i.gh-t red! eyes .and a large
ran-.shclped crest. r,t]" heliewcl in New
Guinea that in capitvitv the .. lo.se all
prid!e in this remnrklahle' but
;;uch is not the 'case, a:s I DI'equentlv no-
ticed that w:hen ,si,tting on ,thp ground
l.b,ey found occupation in dms,sing- with
tl)e beak the crest 'of eae.h o,tlwr. Toe
'finer oOf the 'ttwO' .feU '[\, vie-Um toO
the 'biad ite'mipeT 'of a Siilvpr pheasant.
Her companion, alw,ays a d, .. 1iC'ate hird.
died from na,tuml cause". I never
cea,sed to grieve oOver my los>;, fiS und,er
pr'esentcondlitiollos there is littlf' chance
As autumn app,roaches man." scarlet- \
hreasted (IPetroeca Leggii) make
their way from t'he bush into till' gardens .
( 12)
of having ,them replaced. The Govern-
ment 'of 'British New Guinea b.1;; noOw a
protec-tive poOlicy with regard toO the:se
l>irdlS" and will no:t allow ,them ,to he ex-
porbed. I und'erstand ttnt the only
chaIl!ce would he ,to' try for ,them in Ger-
m.an New Guh:.}a. I.n thinking over the-
m.erits of these differen t varieti,e.s ,there
is none I think ,sO' ,charming to 'keep.
nor more wor.thy .of {lur ad!mimti'on in
many way,s, than our COmlIlJOn bronze-
wing. It ,bs not necess.ary ,to (lonsider ,the-
waJls 'of the allits 'only t,O' find wisdlo.m;
we (lan .obtain and ma,ny o,ther le.ssons,
by makiIl!g ourselves famiHar with the
habit.s and doispO'siti'o'll of ,these lird,s.
lhe cO'ck e,peci,ally i,s, worthy of notice;
,as soon a,51 we hear him cooo-ing to a,t-
'tract the attention of his ma,te we know
tha,t nesting {I.pematioon& aJ'e abDut to
begin, and! by wa.tching :we sO'on see 'him
.tiying from place ,to iplac,e in ,search of a
g'ood ,foundlJ,tion ,to huild upon. As soon
as tbi,s' impor,tant ma,tter is, ,settled, and
although ,the nes,t at Ifill1stis wmposed
'of ,a few twigs or .small ;,tick" only, each
one is carefully .t.e,s:t'ed before 'being ,taken
up, a ne! I l:lllv'e 'often been "urpris'ed to
,see hDW many have been rejede(l a's
unsuitable. [During incubaition, ,and after-
w;:trch, I have 'of,te,n seen them ,adding
fresh material, a,s if too enhan'ce ,the com-
for,t and s,ecurity of ,tbEl abode. Doe" not
,all ,this Ishow a gr,ea,t ,amDunt of intelli-
gence and! reasoning power? iBey'oml this
the birds al"e bra ve in defence of
the eggs and young, both before and
,after hatching. A,Lthough I have often
tri.ed, I have never in driving
from the nest-ei,ther parent would
fiip handW'ith his or bel' wing. and
with fiashinlg 'eye 'Utter a note .of disap-
proval with all ,the voice it could oom-
mand. I always turned! ,awaY' vanquished.
but with increased adimJirat.ion I()f their
When feeding iJ:oe phea-
sant-s I have n{)ticed them attempt t()
shrike the la.tter with their wings, :which
,sho\\18 HIem too be possessed of a good
amount of courage. 'At the pres'ellit ,time-
ln e,ffort is being made by the Avicul-
tural 'of England.too introduce
hoLjo, varieties of ,these pig>eons into the
ipublic pal,k,s a.bout ,London, but I dDubt
if our h.-onze-wing will lend itself to ae
climntiila,tion in .<1 coIder climate than
Alrpad,v, hoW'{W'er, the cre,sted:
of South 'Wales 1.S ,alt JibeT'ty
in the ground.s ,of Woburn Abbey, t,he'
IreSlll'ence of .the Duche.ss of BPdford, one
of the membpl1s of the Aus'tralian Orni-
thological Union.
of Hobart. This vear the first wert> sern
on the 11th Mab, and they are now
fairly common.