Chap, xii.] PERIPATUS NOV.E ZEALANDI/E. 241 



to be seen commonly walking about in the streets, but all in 

 European costume, reminding one somewhat of English gipsies. 

 The coast hills in the general appearance and colour of 

 their vegetation, as seen from sea, recalled Kerguelen's Land, 

 especially the shores about D'Urville Island, but all the valleys 

 and inland slopes are covered with a dense forest and almost 

 impenetrable bush. The trees are covered with epiphytic ferns, 

 and Astelias, Liliaceous epiphytes, which, perched in the forks 

 of the branches, remind one in their habit and appearance of 

 the Bromeliaceous epiphytes of Tropical America. 



One of the most remarkable trees which was pointed out 

 to me by Mr. T. Kirk, F.L.S., is the Rata, a Metrosideros, 

 M. Robusta. This, though a Myrtaceous plant, has all the habits t 

 of the Indian figs,* reproducing them in the closest manner. 

 It starts from a seed dropped in the fork of a tree, and grows , 

 downward to reach the ground ; then taking root there, and / 

 gaining strength, chokes the supporting tree and entirely ' 

 destroys it, forming a large trunk by fusion of its many stems. 

 Nevertheless, it occasionally grows originally directly from the 

 soil, and then forms a trunk more regular in form. Another 

 Metrosideros, M./lorida, is a regular climber. 



I did not see many birds. The gull of Kerguelen's Land 

 {Larus dominkanus) was common in the harbour. On the 

 telegraph wires along the shore sat a Kingfisher {Halcyon 

 sanctiis) in abundance, and dashed down from thence on its 

 prey into the shallow water of the harbour. It interested me 

 because it was the first Kingfisher that I had seen leading 

 a littoral existence and feeding on sea fish. I afterwards 

 became familiar with Kingfishers thus inhabiting the seashores 

 in the Straits of Magellan and the coast of Oregon in North- 

 west America. In the poulterers' shops the curious parrot, or 

 Kaka, Nestor meridionalis, is hung up for sale. Mr. Potts 

 describes this bird as tearing away the dead wood of trees in 

 search of insects, and appearing to replace to some extent in 

 its habits, in New Zealand, the totally absent Woodpecker. 



The New Zealand Peripatus {F. novce zealandice) is abundant 

 near Wellington amongst dead wood, and I had 40 or 50 

 specimens brought to me as the result of a day's search in the 

 Hutt Valley. As in the case of the Cape of Good Hope 

 species, the males are much less abundant than the females. 



In essential structure and habits the animal closely resembles 

 the South African species. It is distinguished by having fewer 

 pairs of feet, viz., 15 instead of 17. The females all contained 

 young although it was mid-winter. 



* T. Kirk. F.L.S., "On the Habit of the Rata, Metrosideros robusta. 

 Trans. New Zealand Inst., Vol. IV., 1871, p. 267. 



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