Page:The Emu volume 4.djvu/160



— The photograph (Plate IX.) depicts a large red gum tree growing in a small dam in the Western District of Victoria. At the time of my visit the following birds were nesting in it, viz.:—The Whistling Eagle {Haliastur sphenurus), Black Cormorant {Phalacrocorax carbo), Little Black Cormorant {P. sulcirostris). Little Cormorant {P. melanoleucus),V^t& Ibis {Ibis molucca), Y€iow-hi(td SpoonhxW {Platibis fl.avipcs), and White-necked Heron {Notophoyx pacifica). The birds seemed quite contented in company, but when they left their nests a pair of Ravens {Corone australis) would quickly come and commence eating the eggs, but they had a decided preference for Herons' and Spoonbills' eggs, always taking them before those of the Cormorants.—D. Le Souef.

v. .—Mr. E. M. Cornwall (Cairns), writing under date 8th November, 1904, states:—" I am sending by this mail some photographs (Plates VII. -VIII.) which may prove of interest, and which I think will go a long way towards settling the Black versus Brown Butcher-Bird controversy. I have the young birds at home; they are doing well, and I hope to rear them, and send them along to the Melbourne Zoological Gardens.

"The nest is most charmingly situated amongst a luxuriant growth of the pretty little button-plant—some people call it an orchid; I don't know whether it is or not. Close to the nest grows a sturdy little plant of an orchid {Dendrobium undulatum On the other branch, just above the right shoulder of the figure, may be seen several plants of another pretty orchid {Aria fitzallcm), whilst on the lowest fork, near the bottom of the picture, there is still another orchid, ' Cyrnbidium.' There were three young ones (two black and one brown) in the nest, but one of the black fell out just before the photo, was taken. The two parent birds were both black."

Again, under date 1st December, Mr. Cornwall writes:—" I do not know that I can add anything to what was said last year when I found three nests each containing three young birds, in two of which one was brown and two black, and in the other two brown and one black. The three which I photographed I still have alive, and they are doing well, and I also have another young brown one which a young friend of mine brought me. When he captured it it had left the nest, and was in company of two black ones. I found three other nests with young ones this year; one had three and the others two each, but all were black. In every case the two parent birds were black.

"To my mind it is conclusively proved that the black and brown birds are identical, and all we have to settle now is whether the young brown is the male or female, and at what age they