﻿212 Transactions. — Zoology. 



of high authority, have stated that this bird breeds with the common 

 domestic fowl. The statement, if correct, is so extraoi'dinaiy, that all the 

 facts in support of it ought to be made known. As the case has never come 

 under my own observation I merely mention this statement, in the hope 

 that those who possess any knowledge on the subject will publish tlie facts. 



The GlauGopis cinerea, or Crow, of the Middle Island, is rarely found below 

 an altitude of two or three thousand feet, and, indeed, is found in greatest 

 numbers at and above the higher of these altitudes, in the glens of the 

 Fagus forest. I am inclined to think that these birds pair for life, as 

 they are almost invariably found in couples at all seasons of the year.* 

 They are extremely active,' hopping with long strides along the ground, 

 and from branch to branch, in their search for insects. Their chief food, 

 however, consists of sow-thistle and other succulent herbs, and it is 

 remarkable that, in eating such substances, they hold them with the fist 

 precisely as a parrot holds his food, tearing ofi" and swallowing large frag- 

 ments. The young birds thrive well in confinement, feeding freely on bread 

 and milk and greenstuif, with a few grubs now and then. Unfortunately, some 

 birds which were being thus brought up for me, were accidently killed, and no 

 opportunity has since occurred of repeating the experiment. The note of this 

 bird is wonderfull}^ sweet and plaintive, and, during the breeding season, its 

 song is one of the most varied and beautiful of all the New Zealand birds. It 

 appears, however, always to be pitched in a minor key. The male birds are 

 very pugnacious, fighting, whenever they meet, with the greatest determination. 

 They are still numerous in the forests adjoining my station, but I fear the 

 wdld cats are likely to clear them out within a few years. 



The Eobin (Fetroica albifrons) is a very bold bird, its tameness evidently 

 springing not merely from a sense of security, but also from an absence of fear. 

 It is to be found in every part of the forest, and the traveller rarely rests for 

 a few minutes before one of them is to be seen seeking for insects on the ground 

 disturbed by his footsteps, or iipon the site of some piece of decayed wood 

 which he may have moved. I have had these birds more than once sitting 



* Since the foregoing was written, I have found the following statement in Dieffen- 

 bach's "Report to the New Zealand Company," dated October, 1839 : — "The bird called 

 Kokako, and Wattle Bird by the Europeans, from its two gold-coloured and indigo maxil- 

 lary flaps, I found only at Ship Cove, in the middle region of the hills and upon trees. 

 It seems to be a kind of Gracula, of the size of the Jay, has a strong black beak, with a 

 slightly curved upper maxilla, and measures 16 inches from the tip of the beak to the 

 end of the tail. Its feet are black like those of the former. Its plumage is soft silk -like 

 and glossy black. It has a penetrating, not disagreeable voice, feeds upon seeds, and 

 lives in pairs upon the trees. " The account above given is in many respect inaccurate, 

 and is only quoted in support of my suggestion that the male and female Kokako pair 

 for life. — W. T. L. T. 



