HINTKRLAND NOTES 477 



It was at Um-ata where, also, I licai'd tlie white beli-hird 

 for tlie first and tlie only time. IIuniniingl)irds are plen- 

 tiful; their deheate nests were often seen. In the thiekets 

 and tan<4"les, to tlie south of Kwatata creek, the jaeaniar 

 [Galhiila viridis), breeds. As it somewhat resembles a 

 hummingbird, though it is mueh larger, the Indians call 

 it Tuku-i yung, or hummingbird's father; just as they call 

 the thumb, thantha yung, the finger's father. This bird 

 must not be confused with the long-toed jacana, which may 

 occasionally be seen, standing upon the innnense pads of 

 the Victoria Kegia, one of the original homes of which is the 

 Thewarikuru, in its lake-like expanses, at the southei-n foot 

 of the ^Mission Hill, from the sumnn't of which hill this water- 

 way is so effectually screened hy the thick bush. 'I'he Indians 

 name their Keception dance after the hummingbird, Tuku-i; 

 and their Cxreat dance, the Parishara, is called after the prim 

 crimson-headed finch, w4iich is to be seen, flitting from bush 

 to bush, along the banks of the Rapo-nunni, almost anywhere 

 in its course. 



As I haye returned to a mention of the riyer, we may as 

 well take note of the duckla. Some call this the snake-bird, 

 a nickname which should belong to the trumpeter, as I have 

 shown. Singly, in twos, or in threes, it may be seen, perched 

 upon some tacouba, or an oyerhanging branch, looking for 

 fish. When disturbed, it has the peculiar habit of dropping 

 low^ and dragging its tail in the w^ater, as if wounded; then 

 it rises and makes off. The duckla with the white collar is 

 rare. The Indian name is saia. Of great beauty is the sun- 

 bittern {Eurypycfa helias) , also fairly common upon this 

 riyer. I haye not seen more than one at a time. The bird 

 makes a beautiful display of the coloring and marking of its 

 tail and wings, when it alights, spreading the tail and wings 

 so as to form a fan. The shades of browns, golds, and greys, 

 are wonderful. It frequents the sunny banks, and, gener- 

 ally, alights upon an open patch, when the sun is shining. 

 Then it runs and secretes itself where the bushes are thick. 



