. The Ibis . nger increased on finding that a stripabout two hundred yards in length, and thirty in width^ wascompletely ruined by having been pulled down and trampledflat on the ground by his unwelcome visitors (see text-fig. 11,p, 631). To obtain specimens required a good deal ofpatient stalking, which was often unsuccessful, as sentinelbirds were always placed on the summits of the lofty , a good series of skins was obtained, and somenotes on the birds habits made, for many of which Iam indebted to Mr. Muir. To my surprise, every Cockatookilled had the whole of the feathers on
. The Ibis . nger increased on finding that a stripabout two hundred yards in length, and thirty in width^ wascompletely ruined by having been pulled down and trampledflat on the ground by his unwelcome visitors (see text-fig. 11,p, 631). To obtain specimens required a good deal ofpatient stalking, which was often unsuccessful, as sentinelbirds were always placed on the summits of the lofty , a good series of skins was obtained, and somenotes on the birds habits made, for many of which Iam indebted to Mr. Muir. To my surprise, every Cockatookilled had the whole of the feathers on the under part of the Mr. T. Carter on Licraetis pastinator (131 body tliickly smeared over with dry mud and vegetablestains, giving the birds a very dirty appearance. Closescrutiny of great numbers of the Cockatoos through mybinoculars at various times, when they were perched on thesummits of dead trees, failed to reveal any that had reallyclean under-plumage, and I was informed that this dirty Text-fi-. Strip of standing wheat-crop trampled flat and destroyedby Licmetis pastinator. condon is the normal state, and that the only clean birdsare recently fledged young, which soon become like the specimens presented to me, that had been shot in July,were also dirty. I find no mention of this soiled plumagein any account of the birds that I have read. AVlien corn is not obtainable, the Western Long-billedCockatoo feeds largely (like its eastern form, Licmetis nasica)upon the bulbs and roots of various plants. One of its Ml. T. Carter on Licmetis pastinator. favourite foods is the bulb of a small species of Sundew(Drosera) tliat grows as soon as winter rains fall, bearing asmall white flower. The scarlet berries of a small creeping])lant (the name of which is nnknown to me) that growsabundantly on sand plains are also much eaten. Probablythe March visits of the Cockatoos to the station are made inorder to feed upon the newly sown wheat-grains. Thelocality is most
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1859
