﻿The Wry-bill Plover of New Zealand 



189 



•prize. The hen-bird was sitting, and I walked up to within a few yards of 

 'her without seeing her, and she then ran off her nest toward me in her 

 <manner of the night before. 



Still there was no sign of her mate, and it was not until I had photo- 

 graphed her on the nest, and near it, that his lordship put in an appearance. 

 She was on the eggs at the time, and he ran straight up to her with a great 

 show of authority and drove her off, chasing her away from the nest. He 

 evidently wanted her to go away and feed, for, when she flew about twenty 

 yards and then settled, he ran after her, and then she flew away off down 

 stream. 



Then he returned to the nest, and, sitting on the eggs, noticed us 

 apparently for the first time. However, he did not seem to be as interested 

 in us as we were in him, and he 

 shuffled round on the eggs trying to 

 get comfortably settled, while we yot 

 ready to photograph him. Somehow 

 he did not seem to be able to arrange 

 •things to his satisfaction, for, presently, 

 he got up and began turning the eggs 

 over with his bill, and then he saw 

 that something had happened to them 

 that he knew nothing about. He 

 hastily turned them chipped side down- 

 ward, and walked round the stone at 

 the back of the nest. He continued 

 to trot round about the nest for some 

 time, evidently in a state of great agitation and perplexity. He did not sit 

 on the eggs again, but finally took up a position close to them, watching 

 them with the most dejected look imaginable, his whole appearance expres- 

 sing just about as much joy and ease as that of a bachelor who is holding 

 a baby. And there we photographed and left him. 



There has been much discussion as to the reason for the curved bill of 

 this bird, but to any one who has watched the birds closely when feeding, 

 the reason seems obvious. The curvature is toward the right, and the bird, 

 when feeding, always keeps the stone under which it is looking for food 

 on its right. The curved bill enables the bird more conveniently to get at 

 its food. If, as frequently happens, it espies some grubs or other delicacies 

 under a stone on its left, it turns right round before trying to pick them up. 

 There is no doubt that the curved bill enables them readily to secure food 

 which to a bird with a straight bill of the same length would be almost 

 inaccessible. Against this argument is stated the fact the birds migrate to 

 the estuaries and mud- flats in the North Island, where a curved bill is rather 

 a disadvantage than otherwise. Still, the extra facility with which they can 



FEMALE WRY-BILL RESENTING INTRUSION 



