Smith. — On tlie Birds of Lake Bruimer District. 211 



Stringops habroptihis (Owl Parrot, or Kakapo). 



This remarkable bird is now becomiug rare at Lake 

 Brunner. It was exceedingly plentiful at the time of the 

 Kangaroo gold-rush in the district over twenty years ago. 

 Since then it has diminished in numbers, and bids fair to be 

 numbered with other species now rapidly becoming extinct. 

 Being nocturnal in their habits, they emerge from their hiding- 

 places in the evening to feed, and climb among the lower 

 branches, consuming the soft vegetation. When several are 

 feeding together, they continue throughout the night to answer 

 each other's calls, or hoarse mutterings, uttered while masticat- 

 ing their food. On very dark nights it is pleasing to steal as 

 near them as possible and listen to them nibbling at the tender 

 leaves, while they croak and mutter continuously. By the 

 morning their crops are enlarged to their full extent with the 

 nutritious green food consumed during the night. On moon- 

 light nights their sight is clearer, and they take advantage of 

 this to roam farther from their hiding-places to feed. On the 

 outskirts of the bush several may be seen together waddling 

 leisurely along towards some favourite feeding-gi-ounds, return- 

 ing, when their hunger is appeased, to their usual hiding-place. 

 The latter is generally in or about the decayed roots of old 

 trees or hollow prostrate trunks. It is sometimes easy to 

 find their homes by the presence of little trodden paths leading 

 to them. 



Nestor vieridioimlis (Kaka Parrot). 



The kaka parrot is very common in the lake vallej'. Be- 

 longing to the family of honey-sucking parrots, they repair in 

 the spring to the blooming kowhai trees, and regale themselves 

 on the flowers. "While thus engaged, they allow a near ap- 

 proach. It is then most interesting to observe them climbing 

 among the pale-green foliage and seizing a bunch of the yellow 

 flowers, carefully and gently pressing the receptacle of the 

 flowers between the tongue and softly-lined overlapping upper 

 beak, and sucking the honey. The structure of the flower is 

 peculiarly adapted to the process, which is performed without 

 any injury to it. The kaka's repast is not, however, obtained 

 without some effort. Naturally somewhat clumsy in their 

 movements, they sometimes experience difficulties in reaching 

 the masses of flowers on the tips of the branches owing to the 

 very brittle nature of the twigs. They, however, fully realise 

 this, and instinctively select the flowers on the stronger 

 branches. When within reach, they hold firmly to the branch 

 and, stretching the neck to its full length, seize and draw the 

 flowers towards them with the beak. One foot is then used 

 to hold the flowers, while the other holds firmly to the branch 

 and steadies the bird when sucking the honey. The weight 

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