Part 35

Singing Lark of the Colonists.

If Australia be not celebrated for its singing-birds, it has still some few whose voices serve to enliven the monotony of its scenery; and of these no one deserves greater attention than the bird here represented, which is a very sweet songster, and whose note somewhat resembles, but is much inferior to that of our own Skylark. With the exception of Van Diemen’s Land, where I believe it is never seen, it appears to be distributed over all parts of Australia, as evidenced by my collection, containing specimens from every locality yet visited by Europeans. In New South Wales and Western Australia it is strictly migratory, and only a summer visitor, arriving in August and departing in February; on the other hand, I met with it on the sand hills at Holdfast Bay in South Australia in the month of July, the period of winter: although not exclusively a terrestrial bird, it spends much of its time on the ground, from which it makes perpendicular ascents to a great height in the air, and then descending to the tops of the highest trees, flies horizontally from one tree to another, singing all the time with the greatest volubility; the female, which is not more than half the size of the male, remaining all the while on the ground, from which she is not easily aroused, and consequently not so often seen. It evinces a great partiality to open grassy plains here and there studded with trees. It breeds in October, November and December, and sometimes rears two broods during the season. The nest is placed in a depression of the earth, most frequently at the foot of a slightly raised tuft of grass, and is externally composed of strong grasses and lined with very fine grasses, and sometimes with hairs. The eggs are four in number, ten lines long by seven and a half lines broad, and are of a purplish white, very boldly marked with freckles and small blotches of deep chestnut-brown, so much so as frequently to render the blotches more conspicuous than the ground colour.

The female frequently utters a monotonous shriek or call at night.

The male has all the upper surface dark brown, each feather margined with olive-brown; upper tail-coverts rufous; lores black; stripe above the eye and throat whitish; all the under surface pale brownish grey, deepening into buff on the under tail-coverts, and with a series of minute spots of brown on the breast; irides hazel; bill dark lead-colour in summer, fleshy brown in winter; tarsi yellowish grey; feet bluish ashy grey.

The female is smaller and is destitute of the black lores; in other respects she is so like the male that a separate description is unnecessary.

The figures represent the two sexes of the natural size, on a branch of the cherry-tree of the colonists (Exocarpus Cupressiformis).

MIRAFRA HORSFIELDII: Gould.

J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith. Hullmandel & Walton Imp. ]

MIRAFRA HORSFIELDII, Gould. Horsfield’s Mirafra.

Mirafra Horsfieldii, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., January 27, 1847.

This species, which I have named Horsfieldii in honour of the founder of the genus, is sparingly dispersed over all the plains and open districts of New South Wales, but is more abundant on the inner side of the mountain ranges towards the interior than between the ranges and the sea; I have also a specimen procured during Dr. Leichardt’s overland expedition from Moreton Bay, and one from the neighbourhood of Port Essington: both of these, although possessing characters common to each other, differ from specimens obtained in New South Wales in being larger, redder in colour, and in having a stouter bill—features which will probably hereafter prove them to be distinct, and which exhibit a near alliance to the true Mirafra Javanica.

The bird here figured is from New South Wales, where I found it more abundant on the Liverpool Plains than elsewhere; I also met with solitary individuals in the district of the Upper Hunter.

In its habits it is more terrestrial than arboreal, and will frequently allow itself to be almost trodden upon before it will rise, and then it merely flies to a short distance and descends again; it may often be seen perched upon the strong blades of grass and occasionally on the trees; it frequently mounts high in the air after the manner of the Skylark of Europe, singing all the time very melodiously, but with a weaker strain than that favourite bird; it also occasionally utters its pleasing song while perched on the branches of the trees.

The sexes are alike in colour and size.

General plumage ashy brown, the centre of the feathers dark brown, the latter colour predominating on the head, lower part of the back and tertiaries; wings brown margined with rufous; over the eye a stripe of buff; chin white; under surface pale buff; throat crossed by a series of dark brown spots arranged in a crescentic form; under surface of the wing rufous; bill flesh-brown at the base and dark brown at the tip; feet fleshy brown.

The figures are of the natural size.

ESTRELDA BELLA.

J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith. Hullmandel & Walton Imp. ]

ESTRELDA BELLA. Fire-tailed Finch.

Loxia bella, Lath. Ind. Orn. Supp., p. xlvi.

Black-lined Grosbeak, Lath. Gen. Syn. Supp., vol. ii. p. 198.—Ib. Gen. Hist., vol. v. p. 267.

Fringilla bella, Vig. & Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p. 257.

Wee-bong, Aborigines of New South Wales.

Fire-tail, Colonists of Van Diemen’s Land.

Van Diemen’s Land may be considered the stronghold of this species, for it is universally and numerously dispersed over all parts of that island suited to its habits and economy. It also inhabits New South Wales, but is there far less abundant than in other districts. I generally observed it in small communities varying from six to a dozen in number, searching on the ground for the seeds of grasses and other small plants which grow on the plains and open parts of the forest. It also frequents the gardens and pleasure-grounds of the settlers, with whom it is a favourite, few birds being more tame or more beautifully coloured than this little Finch; the brilliant scarlet of the rump, and the base of the tail-feathers strongly contrasting with the more sombre hue of the body. Its flight is extremely rapid and arrow-like, particularly when crossing a plain or passing down a gulley. It is a stationary species in Van Diemen’s Land, and probably also in New South Wales. In the former country I constantly encountered it breeding, my attention being usually attracted by the enormous nest which it builds, and which, being placed among the branches of shrubby trees without the slightest attempt at concealment, is very conspicuous. It moreover breeds in small communities, several nests about ten inches in diameter being placed on the same tree. They are constructed entirely of grasses and stalks of plants, dome-shaped in form, with a hole near the top for the ingress and egress of the bird. The eggs are five or six in number, rather lengthened in form and of a beautiful flesh-white, eight and a half lines long by six and a half lines broad. It breeds from September to January, during which period two or three broods are reared. Its note is a single mournful sound emitted while perched on the low branches of the trees in the neighbourhood of its feeding-places.

The sexes present no external difference, and may be thus described:—circle surrounding the eyes, lores, and a line crossing the forehead black; all the upper surface, wings and tail olive-brown, crossed by numerous narrow crescentic lines of black; rump and base of the tail-feathers shining scarlet; all the under surface grey, crossed by numerous narrow crescentic lines of black; centre of the abdomen and under tail-coverts black; tips of the primaries and tail-feathers brown without bars; bill crimson, becoming paler at the base of the upper mandible; irides very dark brown; eyelash beautiful light blue; feet flesh-colour.

The Plate represents the two sexes of the natural size.

ESTRELDA OCULEA.