116 MARVELS OF THE ANIMAL WORLD 



In the colony of New Zealand special efforts are 

 being made to preserve the native fauna, and 

 several areas of territory, such as the Little Barrier 

 Island and Gouland Downs, have been proclaimed 

 as sanctuaries wherein the wild life may remain 

 undisturbed. The latter reserve is situated in 

 the Nelson province of New Zealand, and owes its 

 inception to Mr. R. E. Clouston, a mining engineer, 

 who, when exploring in that region, quite recently 

 and unexpectedly discovered that a considerable 

 number of rare birds, including Kea or Kaka 

 parrots, owl or night-parrots, tuis, rifle-birds, rain- 

 birds, and the great apteryx frequented the district. 

 As the ground happened to belong to the Crown, it 

 was quickly set apart as a sanctuary for the feathered 

 folk. 



Amidst the British possessions in Africa there 

 are quite a number of reserves for the preservation 

 of animal life. Of these, seven are situated in 

 Rhodesia, four in Nigeria, three in the Transvaal, 

 two in the Sudan, two in Somaliland, two in Uganda, 

 and a like number in both Nyasaland and British 

 East Africa. In addition there are several others 

 in Cape Colony and Natal. 



The establishment of many of these animal 

 sanctuaries was due, to a great extent, to the 

 efforts of the Society for the Preservation of the 

 Wild Fauna of the Empire, which was inaugurated 

 in the year 1903. That the creatures which dwell 

 therein appreciate and recognise the protection 

 afforded to them is proved by the fact that, in the 

 Southern Game Reserve of British East Africa, 



