Fulton. — The Long-tailed Cuckoo. 117 



first by a Scarlet Robin {Petroica leggii) and then imme- 

 (iiately after by a Spine -billed Honey -eater." With refer- 

 ence to the statement that young Cuckoos are sometimes 

 fed by old Cuckoos, Dr. Ramsay says, " While walking 

 through a half-cleared paddock I was not a little surprised, 

 upon hearing the cries of a young Cuckoo, to see two adult 

 birds of the same species (Caculus pallidas) flying after it, 

 settling beside it, and apparently paying it great attention. 

 Several times they flew away, but returned to it again, and 

 from their actions I am convinced that they were feeding it, 

 though I was unable to obtain a view sufficiently close to 

 make sure of the fact "(18). Of the Indian Koel {Eudynamis 

 honorata) Allan Hume says, "I have never seen Grows feed- 

 ing fully fledged Koels out of the nest, but I have repeatedly 

 watched adult Koels feeding young ones of their own species. 

 I am pretty nearly convinced that after laying their eggs the 

 females *keep somewhere about the locality, and take charge 

 of the young directly they can leave the nest, but I never 

 saw more than one young one in the charge of an old 

 female "(16a). 



Mr. ivy gives several instances of South African Cuckoos 

 lurking about nests in which they hal deposited their eggs, 

 and undoubtedly keeping an eye on them ; and he says that 

 he saw two adult birds, Goccystcs gliudarias, with five young 

 ones, all flying together late in February (110). Tnis may 

 have been a pair which had mated, built a nest, and hatched 

 out a brood ; but this bird is considered always parasitic, and 

 Mr. Ivy was of the opinion that the old birds had merely col- 

 lected their brood previous to migrating. Ooe of the most 

 remarkable facts in this connection is the deposition in other 

 birds' nests of eggs already partly incubated(38). This shows 

 that the egg has been either already sat on by the mother 

 Cuckoo, or removed from one foster-nest to another. Tnis 

 is known to have occurred, Mr. Bendire narrating a' most in- 

 teresting account of it(112). Is it possible that there is still 

 another way in which the egg could be partly incubated — 

 namely, by the heat and moisture of the bird's own mouth and 

 throat while carrying the egg about in the search for a suitable 

 home for it(lll) ? Nests found one day with fresh eggs in 

 them, and next day with partly incubated eggs of Cuckoos in 

 addition, give one food for reflection(96). Many observers 

 have recorded the feeding of the New Zealand Long-tailed 

 Cuckoo by the Grey Warbler, but I can find no instance of a 

 young one being found in the nest of that bird, and but a single 

 occurrence of a supposed egg. An egg stated to be that of the 

 Kohoperoa was sent to Sir Walter Buller by the Rev. Mr. 

 Taylor, of Wanganui, but he did not say from what nest he 

 had removed it, though it seemed to correspond in appearance 



