45 



Var. i. 



Iii June, 1870, I received from Manawatu a very beautiful specimen of the variety known among the 

 natives as " Kaka-pipi-warauroa." The whole of the plumage was most handsomely variegated, each feather 

 having a brownish-black centre, and the margins broadly edged with orange-red and yellow. These bright 

 markings were most conspicuous on the nape aud upper surface of the wings. The sides of the face and the 

 ear-coverts were of a bright golden yellow, changing to red on the long feathers overlapping the lower man- 

 dible ; the sides, thighs, and lower part of the abdomen arterial red, with lighter bands ; the lining of the wings 

 brilliant scarlet, banded with yellow and black. The natives had this beautiful bird in their possession for many 

 months ; and the delighted settler who wrote apprising me of it, described it as " a bird with all the colours of 

 the rainbow." I ultimately induced the owner to part with it, giving him in return a block of the much-prized 

 greenstone, weighing more than 20 lb. I designed this rara avis for the Zoological Society of London, and 

 shipped it accordingly with every care ; but it appeared to suffer from the extreme cold, and, unfortunately, 

 perished before it was out of sight of the New-Zealand coast. 



General Remarks. In this species of Nestor the cere is very prominent, and towards the head generally 

 has an abraded appearance, as if the feathers had been rubbed off. The two mandibles are connected at the 

 base by a tough elastic membrane, capable of much expansion, the mandibles being more than an inch apart 

 when fully extended. The tongue, which, like the beak, is bluish grey, is hard and smooth on the under 

 surface, having the appearance of a human finger-nail much produced, along the terminal edge of which there 

 is a fine brush-like development. The upper surface of the tongue is soft, rounded on the edges, with a broad 

 central groove. In adult birds the denuded shaft of the tail-feathers is produced to a fine point a quarter of an 

 an inch or more beyond the web. Freshly killed birds have a peculiar woody odour, which is sometimes very 

 strong. During the season that the Rata is in bloom, the long feathers of the cheeks, and the light parts of 

 the lower mandible, as well as the bare membrane at its base, are stained to a rich orange-colour by contact with 

 the juice of these flowers, which evidently contain strong colouring-matter. 



To MM. Blanchard and Pelzeln belongs the credit of having first determined the true affinities of 

 the genus Nestor, assigning it a station in the subfamily Trichoglossince, or honey-eating Parrots. 

 It bears a close relation to the Australian Lories ; and the New- Guinea form known as Pecquet's 

 Parrot (Dasyptilus pecqueti) appears to exhibit the transitional or connecting link between these 

 two well-marked groups. 



In habits and structure the members of the genus Nestor are true flower-suckers, the tongue 

 being furnished at its extremity with a fine brush-like development for that special purpose. The 

 common Kaka of New Zealand is the type of the genus. 



Sprightly in its actions, eminently social, and more noisy than any other inhabitant of the 

 woods, the Kaka holds a prominent place among our native birds. Being semi-nocturnal in its 

 habits, it generally remains quiet and concealed during the heat of the day. If, however, the 

 sportsman should happen to find a stray one, and to wound instead of killing it, its cries of 

 distress will immediately rouse the whole fraternity from their slumbers, and all the Kakas 

 within hearing will come to the rescue, and make the forest echo with their discordant screams. 

 Unless, however, disturbed by some exciting cause of this sort, they remain in close cover till the 

 approach of the cooler hours. Then they come forth with noisy clamour, and may be seen, far 

 above the tree-tops, winging their way to some favourite feeding-place ; or they may be observed 

 climbing up the rough vine-clad boles of the trees, freely using their powerful mandibles, and 

 assuming every variety of attitude, or diligently tearing open the dead roots of the close 



