Drummond. — Little Barrier Bird-sanctuary, 503 



into a joyous chorus. The bell-birds and the tuis lead, and 

 are followed by the robins, the whiteheads, and others, until 

 an almost incredible volume of sound is created. There is a 

 surprising variety of notes, and, as they are all poured forth 

 at the same time, they make a din of bewildering music. 



Pied shags (Phalacrocorax varius) are plentiful, and are 

 increasing rapidly. There are several shaggeries near the cliffs ; 

 the largest is about three-quarters of a mile from Mr. Shake- 

 spear's house. The black shag (P. carbo) is occasionally seen 

 on the island. I became personally acquainted with the black 

 petrel (Majaqueus parkinsoni) and Cook's petrel (CEs'relata 

 cooki). both of which nest in the burrows upon the heights. 

 The cry of the black petrel, which is often heard at night, is 

 unlike that of any other bird. It sounds like the combination 

 of a soft whistle and a deep " whirr," coming from a husky 

 throat. I examined the nest of one of these birds, in the soft 

 soil at the top of Mount Heri-Kohu. The nest was at the end of 

 a burrow, about 2 ft. long. A female bird was sitting on a single 

 egg, and a chick had just thrust its head through the shell. 

 The bird and the egg, after being examined, were placed back 

 in the nest, and, in accordance with the rules of the island, 

 neither was interfered with. 



There are no huias (Heteralocha acutirostris), saddlebacks 

 (Creadion carunculatus), North Island crows (Glaucopis wilsoni), 

 wekas (Ocijdromus), pukekos (Porphyrio melanonotus), bitterns, 

 or North Island thrushes (Turnagra tanagra) on the island. 

 The godwit (Limosa novce-zealandice), the turnstone (Arenaria 

 interpres), and the knot (Tringa canutus), the famous migrants 

 that breed in the Northern Hemisphere and spend the summer 

 in New Zealand, do not visit the island in their regular flights, 

 and shore birds are seldom found on the sanctuary, as there 

 are no mud flats or beaches and no food-supplies for them. 

 Ducks are entirely absent. 



In 1868 Captain F. W. Hutton reported that saddlebacks 

 were present, but were not common, and Mr. Reisehek recorded 

 their presence in 1886 ; but Mr. Shakespear has seen none 

 during the ten years he has resided on the island. Mr. Rei- 

 schek states that he saw the North Island kiwi (Apteryx man- 

 telli), but it must always have been very rare on the island. 

 In 1862 Captain Wood, of the " Porpoise," spent several days 

 on the island with the express object of obtaining kiwis, but 

 found none ; and Sir George Grey, who spent two days on the 

 south-west portion of the island, met with the same disappoint- 

 ment. Mr. Shakespear has not seen any kiwis on the island. 

 Four years ago Captain Bollons, of the " Hinemoa," liberated 

 a southern kiwi (Apteryx australis) and two North Island kiwis 



