192 Transactions.—Zoology. 
child of another species, and about ten times its own size, is no fanciful 
representation, but a true picture of bird life, 
Art. XIX.—On the Nesting Habits of the Huia (Heteralocha acutirostris), 
By Wauter L. Buiter, C.M.G. D.Se., ete. 
[Read before the Wellington Philosophical Society, 29th January, 1876.) 
Five years ago, I had the honor of placing before this Society a somewhat 
complete account of the Huia (Heteralocha acutirostris), with special refer- 
ence to its habits in a state of captivity. This account was reproduced in 
my “‘ Birds of New Zealand” (p. 63-68), together with such further infor- 
mation as I had been able to collect ; and in the introduction to that work 
(p. 17-18), I gave an exhaustive description of its osteology and anatomy, 
from the pen of Mr. A. H. Garrod. J was unable, however, to give any in- 
formation on the nesting habits of this singular bird, beyond what is con- 
tained in the following paragraph :—* Of the nidification of the Huia, 
nothing is at present known. I have been assured, however, by a native, 
that he once found the nest of this bird in the cavity of a tree ; that it con- 
tained two young birds (a male and female), and that they differed from the 
adults in having the wattles flesh-white instead of orange.” 
It will be gratifying to lovers of natural history to hear of the recent 
discovery of a nest of the Huia in the Orongorongo Ranges, near Welling- 
n. A Maori, named Mikaera, who has been a very zealous collector for 
the Museum, brought to Mr, Buchanan, about the 20th of October last, an 
egg of this species, which he had taken from a cavity in a dead tree. Ob- 
serving the old birds passing in and out of the opening, he concluded that 
there was a nest, and, climbing up, attempted to reach the bottom with his 
arm ; finding it too deep, he cut a yard of ‘“ supplejack ” (Rhipogonum 
scandens), and, bending this into a loop, he thrust it down the opening, and 
by this rude means endeavoured to hoist the contents of the nest. He at 
and is of a pale stone-grey, irregularly stained, freckled and speckled with 
purplish-grey, the markings in so i 
e chick is apparently a male 
at the angles of the mouth well developed, and of a flesh- 
whole of the body is bare, with the exception of what appears (in spirits) to 
Oeil RC fara ane Sh i Lh ae) hk 
