swamp-pheasant

Dictionary of Australasian Words Phrases and Usages by Edward E. Morris

n.


called also Pheasant-cuckoo. Another name for the Coucal (q.v.).

1847. L. Leichhardt, `Overland Expedition,' p. 60:

«A Centropus phasianellus (the swamp-pheasantof Moreton Bay) was shot.»

1881. A. C. Grant, `Bush Life in Queensland,' vol. i. p. 116:

«Far down the creek, on one of the river-oaks which grow in itsbed, a swamp-pheasant utters its rapid coocoo-coo-coo-coo-coo-cook.»

1887. R. M. Praed, `Longleat of Kooralbyn,' c. xvi. p. 102:

«The gurgling note of the swamp-pheasant.»

1890. C. Lumholtz, `Among Cannibals,' p. 94:

«The bird Centropus, which is common in all Queensland,is found here in great numbers. Although it really is acuckoo, the colonists call it the `swamp-pheasant,' because ithas a tail like a pheasant. It is a very remarkable bird withstiff feathers, and flies with difficulty on account of itssmall wings. The swamp-pheasant has not the family weakness ofthe cuckoo, for it does not lay its eggs in the nests of otherbirds. It has a peculiar clucking voice which reminds one ofthe sound produced when water is poured from a bottle.»

Dictionary of Australasian Words Phrases and Usages by Edward E. Morris

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