THE FUTURE OF NATIVE AVIFAUNA 



211 



Nowadays not only has the supply of birds, a percentage of which 

 are perpetually falling out of the ranks from natural causes, increased, 

 but the spread of open land has revealed to the harrier insect and reptile 

 life formerly unknown in the land frogs by the edges of water-holes, 

 crickets below the dry cattle-droppings. Lastly, the stocking of the 

 run has supplied to the Harrier mutton on a great scale. In a well- 

 managed, well-fed, and carefully-culled flock running on perfectly safe 

 country, 2 or 2f per cent is about the normal death-rate. It is the 

 unavoidable loss incurred through diseases more or less akin to those 

 causing death in the human race. On Tutira, however, a minimum loss 

 of 5 per cent has never been quite reached ; it is the toll paid by the 

 station to cliff and bog, and works out at the rate of from three to five 

 sheep a day. Some of these are found and the skin at least saved ; 

 some are totally submerged in quaking morass, buried in holes, trapped 

 in under-runners, or smashed by falls from cliffs. The balance, say half, 

 is the perquisite of the Harrier ; he is fed, therefore, at the rate of some- 

 thing not far short of 100 Ib. of meat a day; for the sake of caution, 

 say 50 Ib. a day. Divide that again and 

 say 25 Ib. a day. Many, moreover, of 

 these sheep are fat, so that it is not 

 surprising that Harriers are sometimes 

 killed on the ground by sheep-dogs, the 

 birds so gorged as to be unable to rise. 

 The breeding-quarters of the species will 

 be in the future, fields of oats and clover, 

 raupo swamps, and belts of low manuka. 



The gallant little Falcon, too (Hier- 

 acidea Novce Zealandice), has been more 

 than compensated for loss of native prey by 

 increase of ground larks, by the introduc- 

 tion and spread of pheasant, quail, thrush, 

 blackbird, minah, starling, and lark. Especially is the Sparrow-hawk 

 more plentiful about the centre and uplands of the run. These were 

 districts in olden days barren of bird life, except of ground birds and 

 sedentary species easily able to escape into the all-pervading fern. 

 As to breeding-quarters, the Falcon has the choice of the whole 

 dry-cliff system. 



The Kingfisher, too (Halcyon vagans), has gained, or at any rate not 



Young Falcons. 



