Fulton. — The Pipiwharauroa, or Bronze Cuckoo. 393 



and this name was used until tlie last ten years, when the present name 

 Chalcococcyx lucidus was adopted by modern naturalists. 



The Rev. William Yate (4), in his " Account of New Zealand," published 

 in 1835, makes the remarkable mistake of confusing the two cuckoos, for he 

 says, "'The kohapiroa is one of the sweetest songsters of the woods, but is 

 only heard for about four months in the height of summer. It secures itself 

 during the winter months among stones, or in the holes in the puriri-tree, 

 and does not leave its retreat until all danger of being overtaken with cold 

 has passed away. The pipiwawaroa is a bird of passage, supposed to come 

 from the islands north of New Zealand ; but the Natives assure us that it 

 retires in winter into holes in trees or crevices in the rocks, and does not 

 fly away into winter quarters in other and warmer climes. It is a small 

 bird of very beautiful plumage ; green, white, purple, and gold are the pre- 

 vailing colours. It has no song, is easily caught, and feeds upon the small 

 insects found upon the kauri-tree." 



Polack (5), who visited New Zealand, and pubhshed in 1839 his " Travels 

 and Adventures in New Zealand," says, " Parasitic cuckoos are also found 

 with various plumage, many of them entirely black in an atramentous 

 covering, others variegated iii green, white, and yellow ; some may be seen 

 beautifully attired in golden-green annulets mixed with black, adding a 

 richness to the verdant green common to the birds of Java." A great deal 

 of what Polack has written is incorrect, as was that of the Rev. William 

 Yate, to whom I have referred. Polack says of the kohapiroa, " This little 

 fellow is remarkable for taking particular care of itself, never leaving its 

 retreat until the cold winds from the south have ceased to blow. It fills the 

 bushes with melodious notes, only equalled by musical bells." 



Little reliance can be placed upon the information of these two writers, 

 who were, so far as our birds are concerned, no observers ; but when we 

 come to Dieffenbach's " Travels in New Zealand " (6) in 18-43 we have the 

 w^ork of a true naturalist. His terse description of the birds, and Gray's 

 classification, are all that can be desired ; but he is evidently puzzled by 

 some of Yate's inaccuracies. 



The Rev. Mr. Taylor (7), in 1870, published his " Te Ika a Maui," and 

 informs us as follows : " The piwarauroa {Chrysococcyx lucidus) is the other 

 cuckoo, which is also a bird of passage. Its breast is white, the feathers 

 being fringed with green and gold ; the back is green, gold, and bronze ; 

 the feathers under the tail are white, spotted with brown. It has a very 

 peculiar shrill note, but when first heard in August its cry is feeble. There 

 is a saying that if it continues to cry ' kui, kui," it will be a cold summer ; 

 but if it sings ' witi, witi, ora," it will be a warm season." 



Hutton's " Catalogue of the Birds of New Zealand," (8) published in 

 1871, describes the whistler, or pipiuwaroa, gives careful measurements, 

 -and says, " Migratory. Leaves New Zealand in the winter, and is found in 

 Australia, Tasmania, New Caledonia, Java, and Sumatra." Three years 

 later Buller (9) published his first edition of his " History of the Birds of 

 New Zealand," and evidently copied Hutton's description of the bronze 

 cuckoo, as his wording is identical. His " Manual of the Birds of New Zea- 

 land " came out in 1882, but that and later publications threw no fresh 

 light on the subject, and it was not until 1904, when Hutton and Drummond's 

 ^' Animals of New Zealand " appeared (10), that any new details as to the 

 economy of this bird were made available. Among many interesting points 

 in this book is the statement that the bronze cuckoo is found in New Zealand, 

 Norfolk Island, Cape York Peninsula ; but that in this habitat it is rare. If 



