Retscuex.—On New Zealand Ornithology, 198 
4. Eudyptes pachyrhynchus. Yellow-crested Penguin. 
This noble bird has been found on the coast of the South Island, but is 
most plentiful in the West Coast Sounds, especially Dusky and Milford. 
In Dusky Sound there are several colonies, two in Super Cove and one 
on the west-north-west.of Cooper’s Island. These birds come on shore in 
July, when they begin to build their nests, which consist of a few sticks and 
leaves, which the male brings, while the female constructs a careless nest, 
either in a cave between cliffs or under large stones, and lays one and some- 
times two eggs, similar to those of the Eudyptula minor, only larger and with 
a bluish tint. These birds breed in colonies. I have seen as many as 24 
pairs together. Both sexes assist in hatching their eggs and rearing the 
young birds. About the beginning of September the young are covered 
slightly with down, the head and back black with a greyish tinge, the throat 
and abdomen white. This down increases in thickness as the birds grow 
larger. The female stays with the young the first few days and the male 
brings the food, which consists of various fish, especially the rock cod 
(Percis colias), which they masticate. Afterwards they take it in turns to 
attend the young. It is interesting to watch these birds: some on the 
alert, some coming out of the water with their prey, and others searching 
for their prey. When they are not disturbed they walk or hop upright 
rather clumsily ; but when they are startled by an enemy they stoop down 
and use their flappers as forelegs. For climbing up on the rocks they also 
use their bills, when they get along very quickly. When anything ap- 
proaches them they make a noise similar to a goose (Anser domesticus), 
and the female goes quickly to her young, while the male, if he is near, 
stops by the entrance of the burrow and bites furiously at any intruder. 
As the caves were low and difficult to get at in my first efforts my dog and 
I got many bites before we succeeded in securing any. Though clumsy on 
land, they can be very swift in the water. When swimming the body is 
under water and only the head out, and they swim slow. But when they 
dive they go with great rapidity. I have noticed them in the severest gales 
of wind, and it had not the slightest effect upon their movements, so great 
is their power in their native element. During my six years’ researches I 
have only found two washed ashore. I have observed a colony of about 
14 journeying to their breeding places together. On disturbing them 
they went in a similar manner to the porpoises, jumping out of the water 
and then diving with great rapidity to get out of the way. When these 
birds get often disturbed they leave their breeding settlements and seek for 
more solitary places, generally nearer the ocean, and more inaccessible 
Mr. Gidal told me that in Caswell Sound there have been for ps te 
colonies breeding, but we could not find any of them, as the dogs drove them 
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