122 QBE EN GROUND P ABBOT. 



It is curious that this bird should never be imported, and on ques- 

 tioning a wholesale dealer in foreign birds as to the reason, he replied 

 that the Ground Parrots fed on fresh roots and bulbous plants, and 

 could not be preserved alive during the voyage to this country : which 

 we think can scarcely be the true reason; for if the delicate honey- 

 eating Lories can be brought over alive, surely a bird that can make 

 a hearty meal off a raw potato, should not be very difficult to cater 

 for, but ought to be imported with ease. 



The fact is, bird-dealers, like other people, get into a groove, and 

 there is no such thing as getting them out of it: they have not been 

 used to such and such birds, and one might just as well inquire for 

 a Phoenix at their establishments, as for one of the Ground Parrots, 

 or other birds to which they are unaccustomed. 



The Ground Parrots are partly insectivorous in their habits, and we 

 doubt the possibility of their been kept alive for any length of time 

 without an adequate supply of insect food; but where cockroaches 

 abound, and mealworms are readily attainable, this should be no in- 

 surmountable difficulty in the way either of their importation, or pre- 

 servation when imported. Let the dealers then see to it, and bring 

 us over some Ground Parrots, and Gang Gangs, and other birds, 

 plentiful enough in their own country, but rare, or altogether unknown 

 here, and they will be remunerated for their trouble, and no incon- 

 siderable advance be made in the knowledge of ornithology, which, as 

 a home pursuit, is quite in its infancy among us. 



New Zealand contains a number of different species of these birds, 

 varying in size from that of a small goose, to that of a Rosella Parrakeet, 

 all coloured and shaped after the same pattern, and certain to be the 

 first of the Parrots to fade away from the surface of the earth, in 

 consequence of their feeble powers of flight, and inability to convey 

 themselves out of reach of predatory animals. One species, Strigops 

 habroptilus, has already almost disappeared from its native haunts, and 

 the others are getting scarcer every year. 



Some of these birds burrow in the ground, like rabbits, and bring 

 up their young in this situation : the Great Owl Parrot of New Zealand 

 being an especial instance of departure from the general habits of the 

 race. Writing of this species, Mr. Wood observes: "Even in its habits 

 this bird has much of the Owl nature, being as strictly nocturnal as 

 any of those birds (the Owls). During the daytime it conceals itself 

 in holes, under the stumps of trees, and similar localities, seldom being 

 seen except after sunset. The natives of New Zealand, where it is 

 found, say that during the winter months the Owl Parrots assemble 

 together in great numbers, collecting themselves into certain large 



