ANSERIFORMES 



"5 



and resident — writing in March, 1916, says "the pheasants did not 

 thrive." 



The Canterbury Society began rearing pheasants in 1868, and 

 continued the work for many years, also importing fresh birds from 

 Britain from time to time. Mr Drummond writes as follows: 



In 1868 the Acclimatisation Society bred forty birds and sold them to 

 members for ^2, a pair. In the tussock-covered land of Canterbury they 

 throve specially well, and the large Cheviot Estate, then held by the Hon. W. 

 Robinson, was soon stocked with them. Mr Robinson spared no expense 

 in preparing for their reception when he arranged for a consignment 

 supplied by the Society. He erected commodious aviaries, ordered that 

 all the cats on the estate should be killed, nearly extirpated the wekas, 

 and had the hawks destroyed at the rate of six a day. The society continued 

 to import pheasants for a considerable time. It bred about a hundred 

 birds in a year, and obtained a fairly good income by selling them to the 

 owners of large estates. It seemed as if pheasants would in a few years 

 spread throughout both Islands and become thoroughly naturalised. After 

 this had gone on for some time the birds received a decided check. Their 

 numbers neither increased nor decreased. They then began to decrease 

 rapidly, and apparently almost simultaneously in many districts. Their 

 complete failure, taking the colony as a whole, is now beyond doubt. 

 In Canterbury and other provinces where they were once exceedingly 

 plentiful they are never seen at all. 



The Nelson Society re-introduced pheasants in 1912, and suc- 

 ceeding years, and in 1915 reported them as thriving. 



The Wellington Society continued for years to raise broods through 

 private individuals, but the birds did not increase, ferrets occasionally 

 destroying all the birds in an enclosure. In 1897, in conjunction 

 with other societies they introduced 40 from England. In 1905 they 

 received four pairs from the Government. In 1907 they reared 430 

 at the Game Farm; 347 (English and Chinese cross) in 1908; some 

 230 in 1910; over 300 in 1912; and no doubt large numbers (not 

 specified) in 1909, 191 1 and 191 3; and most of these were liberated. 

 But the curator says they are unable to hold their own against stoats 

 and ferrets. 



The Taranaki Society were still (1913) "buying pheasants' eggs 

 (which hatched poorly), and rearing them at a game farm." In 1915 

 the efforts of the Society to rear birds are referred to, but it is stated 

 that these efforts had been unsuccessful. Mr W. W. Smith, one of 

 the best observers and naturalists in New Zealand says, in February, 

 19 16: "they are still fairly plentiful in Taranaki, but formerly were 

 much more abundant." 



Mr Peacock in 1913 states that pheasants were very plentiful 

 formerly in the Bay of Plenty district, but are now rare ; while black- 



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