46 NEW ZEALAND BIRDS. 



"In the South-Island Kiwi tlic feathers of the upper parts are 

 soft and yielding when stroked against the grain, whereas in tlie 

 North-Island bird {Aptenjw luanteUi), owing to a peculiarity in the 

 structure of the shaft, they have stiffened points, and are harsh and 

 prickly to the touch. Tliis character (apart from a slight difference 

 in the colour of the plumage) is constant in all the specimens I liave 

 examined ; and I have no hesitation in giving it a specific value, 

 adopting at the same time the distinctive names originally proposed 

 by Mr. Bartlctt. In this course I am supported by the unanimous 

 opinion of sevcj-al of the best ornithologists in England, to Avhom I 

 have submitted specimens for examination." — Buller. 



66. Apteryx oweni. Gould. 



G-EEY Kiwi. 



(Plate XXI.) 



Grey spotted witli yellowisli-wlule ; feathers, rather harsh to the touch. 



L., iO ; B., 425 ; T., 2-. 



Very variable in size, generally small. 



-E'.W-— White ; oval ; length, 4-35 ; breadth, 2-6. 



Hah. — Both Islands. 



" It frequents the woods, and, being (like its congeners) nocturnal 

 in its habits, must be sought for in prostrate hollow trunks, natural 

 holes or caverns among the roots of the large forest-trees, and clefts 

 or fissures in the rocks. It breeds in these localities ; and Dr. Haast 

 informs me that he has sometimes taken its nest from under a dense 

 tussock or from the cavity formed by an overhanging stone on the 

 slope of a wooded hill." — Buller. 



57. Apteryx haasti. FoUs. 



ROAEOA. KlWr-KARUAI. 



(Plate XXII.) 



Grrcy, spotted with reddish-white ; featliers, soft to the touch. 

 L., 25 ; B., 5-75 ; T., 27. 

 Hah. — South Island, in alpine regions. 



Note.— The plate illustrating this species is copied from the drawing by Kculcmans, 

 in Eowley's " Ornithological Miscellany." 



