TASMANIA 165 



Four centuries ago, the emu was christened 

 dromaeus a runner, and to-day all over the world, it 

 still holds good. 



In 1642, when Tasman landed in Southern Tas- 

 mania the emu was numerous. Now it is extinct. 

 It was a dark race of the mainland bird. The primi- 

 tive native killed off excess of broods and with the 

 incoming of civilisation in the early part of last 

 century the last of them disappeared. 



Map 69, b, has a King Island race which, also, is 

 extinct. Cultivation and cattle raising have made 

 it impossible for the last of the emus to be still 

 living even in the rank tea tree swamps. 



The last of the Kangaroo Island race, c, is at 

 present in a European Museum. All that remains 

 to us is the mainland species, well distributed over 

 Australia, excepting the rich scrubs of Queensland. 

 The north-west desert country has a sandy col- 

 oured race of it. 



In the thick tropical scrub the cassowary takes 

 its place. This cassowary is a member of another 

 family of the order which is limited to birds having 

 * feeble keel. 



HAWK-LIKE BIRDS 



Though Tasmania has a large quota of Aus- 

 tralian hawks, no one species is peculiar to the 

 State. 



The very swift flying and handsome Black- 

 cheeked Falcon, map 70, "a," gets as far north as 



