428 



Transactions. 



Wren : The note of the wren was this year c sharp as against e last year. 

 The only variation, if it can be called variation, was in the suppression or 

 insertion of rests. The notes might be single, or broken into groups of 

 two, three, four, or more, or they might be uttered up to fifteen times with- 

 out a break in the sequence. 



Kobin (toutouwai ; Miro alhifrons) : This bird's note, a sharp, clear 

 whistle, was of a very simple nature, being a repetition of one note, a sharp. 



Sz-a,. 



(I) ^ 44 ^ 



3 



d .V «J .y Jr 



=^^^ 



Yellow-breasted tit (ngiru-ngiru : Petroeca macroccphala) : This song is 

 simple, but very pretty and plaintive. It is a soft twitter, nearer a 

 whistle than the twitter of the fantail, and is uttered during flight as well 

 as when the bird is stationary ; in the latter case the throat and tail quiver 

 slightly. 



SSt-a 



(0 



r^ r1 M 1^ F^ 



Blight-bird, silver-eye, or wax-eye (tauhou : Zosterops ccerulescens) : 

 Setting aside the rambling melody of the grey-warbler, the blight-bird 

 has the longest definite song of the native birds — so long, indeed, that the 

 name of " tauhou " (the stranger) is justified ; for the songs of the true 

 natives are all short. I heard the song of one bird only, but as it sang 

 away, with slight intervals, for from five to ten minutes, I was able to take- 

 down the various phrases which it employed : — 



(O 



The bird was very obliging : whilst it paused it allowed me to take the 

 pitch and intervals of the various notes of the phrases in (1). Whilst it 

 sang it sat quite still, holding its bill in the air ; its throat throbbed, espe- 

 cially when sounding the notes represented by tiu. As in the case of the 

 fantail, most of the notes could be represented by letters. The song was 

 very quiet and sweet, somewhat like that of a canary, but not nearly so 

 shrill nor vigorous. The songster was quite alone : I heard no other 

 blight-birds near at the time. The phrases were employed in all sorts of 

 sequences : there may have been others which I did not catch, for at first 

 I was content to sit still and listen : other individuals, too, may have 

 different phrases. The following combination is an approximate represent- 

 ation of the song ; but, as stated, the combination constantly varied : — 



■^St^d- 



(3) 



tin tin tiu ti- 



-/■ — M — f tweet twee wee wee wee weet tin tiu 



fe=E 



S 



I 



ti — u — eet twee wee wee weeweet 



tiu tiu tweet 



