Mr. J. Haast on the Ground- Parrot of New Zealand. 343 



10 feet from the ground, and eating berries. As soon as the 

 bird saw me, it threw itself off the tree as if it were shot, and 

 escaped under some large fragments of rock. The most sur- 

 prising thing was that it did not open its wings, nor use them 

 in any way to break the fall. It is strange that a bird with 

 well-formed wings should prefer to use its feet as a means of 

 locomotion, especially as the feet seem rather formed, judging 

 from the position of the toes, for the purpose of climbing than 

 for walking or running. This seems to be a case that clearly 

 proves that variations in form adapt themselves to the mode of 

 life. On examining the wings, I found thera easily moveable, 

 and in no way different from other varieties of the Nestor 

 family. The wing-feathers are well formed ; but the wings are 

 not only very fleshy, but the tendons are likewise very thin and 

 imbedded in fat, apparently in consequence of their not being 

 used. To try whether the Kakapo would not fly, or at least 

 flutter, when pursued, I had a large specimen, captured by my 

 dog without its being injured, brought to an open place, where 

 there was sufficient space to open its wings whilst running, even 

 supposing a large space were required for the purpose. But, 

 instead of attempting this, the bird, when released, ran towards 

 the nearest thicket, moving much like a Fowl, with a celerity that, 

 considering the position of its toes and its unwieldy form, greatly 

 surprised me. During this experiment I had posted myself 

 sideways from the bird, and it appeared to me that the wings 

 were closely pressed to the body; but some of my companions, 

 who stood behind, observed that the wings were slightly open, 

 more, apparently, for the purpose of preserving a right balance 

 than to aid it in running. Though the Kakapo's body does not 

 seem formed for much locomotion, it roams to considerable 

 distances at times. On one occasion we found the impression 

 of its feet in sand more than half a mile from the river's bank. 

 The crops of those we examined we generally found filled with 

 minutely divided moss, in enormous quantities. They were 

 greatly extended, and sometimes so heavy that a single one 

 weighed several ounces. An exception to this we observed in 

 two specimens which had eaten the berries of a species of 

 Coriaria, which gave a peculiar smell to the flesh. The bird 



