237 



Mr. Potts, in his account * of the specimens in the Canterbury Museum, states that " they 

 were taken alive without any very great difficulty, after which they were turned loose amongst the 

 fowls in a poultry-yard. They were found dead shortly afterwards — it is alleged, from exposure 

 to the keen frosty night air, being deprived of the accustomed protection afforded by the thickly- 

 growing sedgy vegetation of their swampy habitat. They had been observed standing motionless 

 on a bare stem or stalk, from which they overlooked the water. ... It is stated that the Little 

 Bittern is so quiet in his habits that it will remain still when approached, and almost suffer 

 itself to be taken by the hand." 



I had an opportunity of observing one of these birds in a state of captivity at Hokitika, in 

 May 1871. It had been taken only a few days before, and was already comparatively tame. 

 Its usual posture was one of repose, with the head drawn in and resting on the shoulders ; but 

 when alarmed or excited it assumed a very different attitude, standing almost bolt upright, with 

 the body resting, as it were, on the tarsal joints, these being brought close together, the neck 

 stretched upwards to its full extent and perfectly rigid, the beak elevated, and the eyes directed 

 outwards and downwards in such a way as to command a full view in front without having to 

 move the head. On being turned out in the veranda it ran quickly and spread its wings, but 

 did not make any attempt to fly, and after a short interval endeavoured to re-enter its cage. 

 It evinced great alarm on the appearance of a cat, stretching up its neck and emitting a peculiar 

 snapping cry. At other times when molested it uttered a cry not unlike that of the King- 

 fisher, although not so loud. Mr. McNee, to whom the bird belonged, informed me that he could 

 not get it to eat any thing till he produced a dish of water containing some " mudfish," which 

 it instantly seized and devoured. This singular fish (named by Dr. Gunther Neochanna apoda) 

 is very common in the Hokitika district, being found in all the creeks and surface-ponds in the 

 woods which here cover the whole face of the country. The remarkable part of their history is 

 that on the pools becoming dry these mudfish burrow into the moist soil or clay, often to the 

 depth of two feet, remaining there for an indefinite time, or till the return of rainy weather has 

 rendered their pools habitable again. Archdeacon Harper informed me that he himself dug up 

 two of these mudfish in comparatively hard clay in his garden, at a depth of more than three 

 feet from the surface, where they were occupying artificially formed chambers. Another curious 

 fact, which I give on the testimony of Mr. McNee, is that several of these mudfish after being 

 exposed in his veranda for a whole night, and apparently lifeless, recovered their vitality on 

 being restored to a basin of water ; and when shown to me on the following day they certainly 

 exhibited a great amount of activity. I think it highly probable that the mudfish constitutes the 

 chief food of the Little Bittern ; for as many of the surface pools are never dry, there would be no 

 difficulty in finding a supply all the year round. 



I may mention also that Mr. Clapcott's bird, while alive in his possession, was fed on worms, 

 and that it would only take them when placed in a saucer or other vessel containing water. 



Nothing whatever is at present known of the breeding-habits of the Little Bittern ; but as the 

 eager search for gold is speedily opening up the rough country on our west coast, we may 

 reasonably look for further particulars before long regarding this and other rare or little-known 

 species. 



* Trans. New-Zealand Inst. 1870, vol. iii. p. 98. 



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