XXX11 



INTBODUCTION. 



of a Woodpecker, that of the female long, slender and semi-circular — a modification of structure 

 adapted to the natural economy of the species— and explainable only on the Darwinian principle of 

 natural selection. The Huia, which is greatly prized by the Maoris on account of its tail 

 feathers — for personal adornment and as a badge of tribal mourning — has, from time immemorial, 

 been confined to a narrow strip of wooded country (mostly mountain) forming part of the old 

 Wellington Province. It is one of the doomed species, as I shall presently show. 



The Huia loves the mountain tops, but it is driven down by the cold in winter to the 

 lower forests. These are quickly disappearing before the woodman's axe in the rapid progress of 

 settlement. The home of the bird is invaded, and the struggle for existence is becoming every 

 day more severe. In spite of the protection extended to this species by the Government — 

 at the request of Lord Onslow and as a compliment to his family— this beautiful bird is doomed, 

 and a few years hence it will be among the things that were. The best chance of preserving a 

 remnant would be, as was intended by the late Mr. Ballance, to snare a sufficient number and turn 

 them out on the island reserves. The bird is too weak-winged to return to the mainland, and, 

 under favourable conditions would, I am sure, thrive and do well in its new environment. 



Nearer still to the border line of final extinction comes the Stitch-bird (Pogonornis cincta) — a 

 form which, strange to say, approximates to Ptilotis, a decidedly sub-tropical genus. This bird 

 is quite unique, in its beauty, among the generally sombre-coloured birds of our avifauna. The 

 male has a jet-black head and neck, with two white tufts projecting from the crown, and a belt of 

 golden yellow on the breast, spreading into epaulettes on the wings. As with many tropical 

 species — but a novel character with our birds — the female has an entirely different plumage, 

 being dull olive green and brown. Thirty-five or forty years ago the Stitch-bird was extremely 

 common in the southern parts of the North Island. It had long before disappeared from the 

 forests of the far North, but, curiously enough, a remnant continued to exist on the Little 

 Barrier Island, in the Gulf of Hauraki, which, as already stated, has now become a Government 

 " bird reserve." Owing to its market value, it is said that about 150 specimens were taken from 

 this island by Keischek and other collectors before the date of the proclamation ; but let us hope 

 that the protecting hand of the Government has not been extended too late to save the species. In 

 its native home, and under favourable conditions, a few pairs would suffice to stock the island 

 again in the course of, say, ten or fifteen years. 



But others of our formerly commonest birds are getting scarce. Our Wood-pigeon — the 

 largest and handsomest of the group of Treronidse, or Fruit-eating Pigeons, to which it belongs — 

 was diminishing so rapidly all over the country that the Legislature, very wisely, passed a special 

 Act, making the year 1896 and every sixth year thereafter, a strictly close season for this bird. 

 The protection is a step in the right direction, and although we may not be able to reach all the 

 influences that are in operation, the strong arm of the law will add to the chances of existence. 

 It is, of course, the apterous and ground-feeding birds that sutler most from the depredations of 

 stoats, weasels and polecats ; but we have undoubted proof that, in the Upper Wanganui and 

 Tongariro country — where these animals abound in great numbers — the Pigeons, which habitually 

 roost in low trees, suffer severely from them. The marauders, which are nocturnal in their habits, 

 climb the trees at night, and attack the Pigeons in their sleep for the purpose of sucking their 

 blood. The numberless bodies of Pigeons found lying in the woods punctured in the neck 

 sufficiently attest the fact. 



Among the small native birds, three species have become practically extinct in the North 

 Island, although still existing on the Little Barrier Island at the north, and on the Island of 

 Kapiti, in Cook Strait. I refer, of course, to the Bell-bird, the native Bobin, and the White- 

 head. In the South Island and in Stewart's Island the Bell-bird, the most charming of our 

 native songsters, is still plentiful, and there are also representative species of the two other forms. 



