174 BIRDS OF THE WATER 



minutes about the nest, she flew off and 

 the young bird again settled down com- 

 fortably on his platform. 



I had at last witnessed the actual process 

 but still wanted to find out how often it 

 w^as repeated, for as yet one of the puzzles 

 of the bird had been that no attempt at 

 feeding had ever been witnessed, and al- 

 though McLean was away for some weeks 

 at this date, I had been time after time 

 for hours about the nest, and the Pigeons 

 were perfectly accustomed to the screen 

 which had been then up for weeks, and 

 was, indeed, hardly necessary, so friendly 

 had the birds become. Until that afternoon 

 no further feeding took place, and no bird 

 was even in the vicinity except the male, 

 who kept watch and ward from his perch 

 on the dead kowhai tree. He never moved 

 from there, and only at long intervals ex- 

 changed a "ku" with me. At about four 

 I heard the hen settle a few yards off, and 

 at the sound the nestling began as before 

 to prepare for his dinner, shaking out his 

 wings and piping. 



