Notes from New Zealand. 253 



breeding together, which would follow as a matter of course 

 on the supposition of hybridism/^ 



I venture to place on record what I consider a case of the 

 interbreeding of the two species. 



While riding up the Tuki Tuki river-bed on December 27, 

 1888, we came upon a pair of Stilts that were evidently 

 breeding. They flew round and at us, and did their best to 

 lure us from their nest or young. One was a true H. nov(S-zea- 

 landice, the other was apparently H. leucocephalus, but seemed 

 to have slightly more black about the head and neck than 

 usual. So, on December 29, we returned and found the 

 birds in the same spot and flushed the black bird from the 

 sliingle, but unfortunately failed to discover the eggs or 

 young. I shot the pied bird, but the black one was too 

 wary and kept at a distance after the shot. 



The bird shot was an adult female, and differs from typical 

 examples of H. leucocephalus in that the black commences 

 on the crown, ear-coverts, and throat, and extends uninter- 

 ruptedhj down the whole neck to the black of the back and the 

 white of the breast ; also the tail is ashy black. The white of 

 the forehead, sides of face, and chin is mixed with grey as it 

 reaches the black. The rest of the plumage is as in H. leuco- 

 cephalus. Length 14'5, wing 9'5, bill 2'9, and tarsus 3-7 

 inches. 



The two birds were certainly paired, but the eggs or 

 young were not found. I traversed in three days (Dec. 17, 

 20, and 27) about twelve miles of the river-bed, taking four 

 nests of H. leucocephalus, as well as eggs of Larus domini- 

 canus, Sterna frontalis (from a colony consisting of only 

 seven nests !), and Phalacrocorax novce-hollandice, and during 

 that time I only saw one pair of H. novoe-zealandice — some 

 four miles below where the Stilts in question were located. 

 Several pairs once bred on the river-bed, and I have taken a 

 nest of the Pied Stilt within a short distance of two of the 

 Black species. 



On November 9, 1889, 1 took the nest of a pair of //. leuco- 

 cephalus, and one of the birds seemed exactly similar to 

 the Stilt described above. 



