74 Transactions. 



that the exaggeration would be very great. Surely we may 

 credit these men, directly concerned as they were, with suffi- 

 cient intelligence to investigate the facts with enough care to 

 convince themselves that the losses were due to keas. 



It has been suggested that it was in the interests of shep- 

 herds and so forth to exaggerate the loss, so that the bonus on 

 kea-beaks might be kept high. I should imagine that 'cute 

 men of business, and Scotchmen to boot, would scarcely be so 

 befooled by their men. 



The Kea seen at Work. 



I have been asked by incredulous folk, " Has any one ever 

 seen a kea at work on the sheep I " I was at one time unable to 

 answer this question, till I investigated the subject, but thanks 

 to my correspondents I am now in a position to say, Most 

 certainly ; on plenty of occasions have the birds been seen 

 on the backs of sheep, and shot while at work pecking awa}' 

 at the wool and flesh. (See letters at end of this article.) 



Several people — viz., Reischek(5), Fraser, Bell — have exa- 

 mined the crop of the bird and found wool and mutton 

 therein. 



I will quote from some of my correspondents' letters in answer 

 to my questions : — 



J. Campbell MTites, " I was coming dow^n the Matatapu 

 when I saw a mob of sheep rushing about as if a dog was dis- 

 turbing them. When I got nearer I saw" a flock of birds hover- 

 ing over the sheep. These were keas. I stopped and watched 

 for a few minutes, and presently I saw a sheep singled out from 

 the others and make towards some rocks with a kea planted 

 on its back. By running under rocks and rubbing against them 

 the sheep got the bird off its back ; but the same [bird] or an- 

 other was soon on again. This went on for some time till the 

 sheep became exhausted." 



A. Fraser \\Tites, " I have seen the kea attacking the sheep 

 and also eating into a sheep when the latter was stuck in deep 

 snow. I have opened scores of keas' crops and found wool 

 and meat therein." 



J. H. King says, " I have often seen the birds at work on 

 a sheep, and have shot them while on the sheep's back. I 

 have seen a flock of twenty or thirty birds attack a mob of 

 sheep in high precipitous country. The kea would harass 

 them until one bird would suddenly alight on a sheep's back, 

 holding on to the wool of the rump. The sheep so attacked 

 would separate from the mob and rush frantically about : it 

 would either go over a bluff or drop down from exhaustion. 



