266 Transactions. 



on horseback on the morning of the 30th March, with the inten- 

 tion of driving some sheep, he noticed a large bird, which at 

 a distance he took to be a hawk, endeavouring to carry off a 

 young turkey. He immediately gave chase on his horse, when 

 the bird dropped the turkey, and settled in a neighbouring 

 gully. Riding into this, with the intention of frightening awav 

 the bird, Mr. New found himself almost on the top of a large 

 bird altogether unknown to him. It was very slow in rising 

 from the ground, so that he was able to seize it by the tip of one 

 of its wings. After a struggle, he succeeded in mastering it, 

 and took it home, where it lived for a few days. Mr. New's 

 homestead is situated on a narrow neck of land between the 

 Pahi and Arapaoa Eivers, flowing into the Kaipara Harbour, 

 and is about half-way between the east and west coasts of the 

 Island — that is, between twenty-five and thirty miles from the 

 sea. 



On examination, the specimen proved to be an adult female. 

 Its total length was 30-9 in. ; the spread of the wings from tip 

 to tip was 60-8 in. ; the length of the wings from the flexure 

 to the tip of the primaries, 20-75 in. ; length of tail, 12-5 in. ; 

 length of culmen, 3-7 in. It will be observed that these measure- 

 ments correspond very closely to the average of those given 

 for Fregata ariel by Mr. Ogilvie-Grant in the " British Museum 

 Catalogue of Birds " (vol. xxvi, p. 449). The specimen also 

 agrees with the description given of the plumage, the white 

 collar round the back of the neck, considered to be one of the 

 marks of the species, being specially prominent. The measure- 

 ments, too, are considerably less than those of Fregata aquila, 

 the greater frigate-bird, the only other member of the genus. 



Although two species of Fregata are generally accepted by 

 ornithologists, they differ little except in size and geographical 

 distribution. The greater frigate-bird is found in all tropical 

 seas, and occasionally strays into temperate regions. Three or 

 four instances of its occurrence in New Zealand have been re- 

 corded, and attempts have been made to identify it with the 

 " holdoi " of Maori tradition. In the Northern Hemisphere 

 it has been captured as far north as the coast of Nova Scotia,. 

 The lesser frigate-bird has a more restricted range. It has been 

 found from Madagascar to the Molucca Islands, and from thence 

 southwards to Australia, being particularly plentiful in Torres 

 Strait. 



The frigate-birds are usually seen singly or in pairs, seldom 

 congregating in any numbers except at their breeding-stations. 

 They are truly oceanic, rarely visiting the land, except during 

 the nesting period. Their marvellous powers of flight have 

 often been described, and need not be specially mentioned here. 



