﻿Mv. 
  W. 
  W. 
  Smith 
  on 
  New-Zealand 
  Birds. 
  519 
  

  

  numerous 
  about 
  many 
  homesteads 
  of 
  the 
  settlers 
  on 
  the 
  

   Canterbury 
  plains^ 
  and 
  on 
  all- 
  the 
  Downs 
  Country 
  under 
  the 
  

   main 
  range. 
  There 
  are 
  two 
  unfortunate 
  drawbacks 
  to 
  most 
  

   species 
  of 
  native 
  birds, 
  namely 
  their 
  exceeding 
  tameness 
  and 
  

   their 
  easily 
  accessible 
  nests. 
  Before 
  the 
  advent 
  of 
  the 
  Anglo- 
  

   Saxon 
  and 
  his 
  accompanying 
  evils 
  in 
  New 
  Zealand 
  the 
  

   native 
  birds 
  had 
  practically 
  no 
  enemies 
  to 
  contend 
  with, 
  and 
  

   in 
  many 
  districts 
  in 
  the 
  South 
  Island 
  peace 
  and 
  harmony 
  had 
  

   reigned 
  in 
  their 
  domain 
  for 
  long 
  ages. 
  Hence 
  their 
  tameness. 
  

   The 
  causes 
  favouring 
  the 
  present 
  increase 
  of 
  the 
  honey- 
  

   eating 
  birds 
  are 
  not 
  very 
  clear 
  to 
  me. 
  I 
  will 
  mention 
  a 
  few 
  

   facts 
  which 
  seem 
  to 
  me 
  to 
  have 
  some 
  bearing 
  on 
  the 
  question, 
  

   although 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  wide 
  of 
  the 
  true 
  cause. 
  "What 
  

   eifects 
  the 
  honey-bee 
  can 
  have, 
  if 
  any, 
  on 
  the 
  economy 
  of 
  the 
  

   honey-eaters, 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  difl&cult 
  for 
  the 
  advocates 
  of 
  the 
  

   theory 
  to 
  explain. 
  But 
  there 
  is 
  one 
  fact 
  which 
  must 
  be 
  

   noted, 
  namely, 
  that 
  the 
  honey-bee 
  has 
  been 
  a 
  comparative 
  

   failure 
  in 
  some 
  districts 
  for 
  the 
  last 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  years. 
  The 
  

   failure 
  has 
  been 
  sometimes 
  attributed 
  to 
  the 
  introduced 
  

   species 
  of 
  humble-bees, 
  which 
  have 
  increased, 
  like 
  many 
  other 
  

   alien 
  animals^ 
  at 
  rates 
  unprecedented 
  in 
  any 
  country 
  in 
  the 
  

   world. 
  From 
  observations 
  on 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  humble-bees 
  in 
  New 
  

   Zealand 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  ascertained 
  by 
  several 
  able 
  observers 
  that 
  

   with 
  the 
  exception 
  of 
  six 
  or 
  seven 
  plants 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  visit 
  the 
  

   native 
  flora, 
  and 
  therefore 
  cannot 
  counteract 
  the 
  effects 
  of 
  

   the 
  honey-bee 
  on 
  the 
  honey-eating 
  birds. 
  Mr. 
  W. 
  H. 
  Hudson 
  

   has 
  recently 
  suggested 
  in 
  ' 
  The 
  Field 
  ' 
  the 
  possibility 
  of 
  the 
  

   birds 
  being 
  stung 
  to 
  death 
  when 
  attacking 
  and 
  eating 
  the 
  

   bees. 
  Such 
  a 
  result 
  would 
  be 
  very 
  probable 
  if 
  the 
  species 
  

   now 
  disappearing 
  attacked 
  bees, 
  but 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  

   ground-feeders, 
  and 
  are 
  confined 
  to 
  the 
  dense 
  bush 
  where 
  

   bees 
  never 
  enter 
  : 
  Glaucopis 
  cinereu, 
  Turnagra 
  crassirostris, 
  

   Creadion 
  carunculaius, 
  Miro 
  albifrons, 
  Apteryx 
  australis, 
  

   and 
  A. 
  oweni 
  are 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  referred 
  to. 
  The 
  

   remarkable 
  Strinyops 
  habroptilus, 
  which 
  feeds 
  during 
  the 
  

   night 
  in 
  the 
  dense 
  bush, 
  is 
  also 
  on 
  the 
  list 
  of 
  doomed 
  species, 
  

   yet 
  it 
  never 
  eats 
  bees. 
  That 
  the 
  bees 
  rob 
  the 
  honey-eaters 
  of 
  

   a 
  little 
  nectar 
  during 
  the 
  season 
  no 
  man 
  would 
  doubt. 
  But, 
  

  

  