NOTES AND QUERIES. 217 
dance of a white moss or lichen, which exactly resembles a lump of white 
wool, so much so that a friend of mine who was travelling through the 
country asked the driver of the coach why there were so many solitary Sheep 
scattered all over the hills, and was informed that these were bunches of 
lichen or white moss, at the roots of which were found small white fatty 
substances, supposed by some to be the seeds of the plant, and by others to 
be a grub or maggot which infested it, and which is the favourite food of 
the Kea. I saw a specimen of this woolly lichen which so closely 
resembled a bit of wool as to be easily mistaken for it. No doubt the bird, 
misled by this resemblance, commenced an exploration in Sheep, and this 
proving satisfactory originated the new habit.—F. R. Goprrey (Mel- 
bourne). 
[The above note has been kindly forwarded to me by Dr. P. L. Sclater. 
In ‘ The Zoologist’ (1895, p. 293) will be found a paper “ On the Habits 
of the Kea, or Mountain Parrot of New Zealand,” by Taylor White, repro- 
duced from the ‘ Transactions’ of the New Zealand Institute, vol. xxvii. 
pp. 273-280 (1895), in which the author agrees with Mr. Huddlestone that 
the bird settles on the Sheep above the kidneys, because it is the broadest 
part, and it can there obtain the best grip of the wool, and that blood rather 
than flesh is what the bird desires. Mr. Godfrey is also in agreement with 
Mr. F. R. Chapman (‘New Zealand Journal of Science,’ 1891), who, 
describing a valley of the Upper Waimakariri, Canterbury, says :—‘“A very 
interesting Raoulia, or vegetable sheep, was very plentiful on steep rocky 
places; but I believe a finer species is found on Mount Torlesse, . . . It 
is said that the Keas tear them up with their powerful beaks, and that 
these birds learnt to eat mutton through mistaking dead Sheep for masses 
of Raoulia.—Ep.| 
Sagacity among Birds.—Some few years ago, when staying at the 
Great Eastern Hotel, Calcutta, I witnessed an interesting scene between 
three birds. It was early in the morning, and when sitting in my room I 
noticed a Hawk alight on the ledge about a foot wide that ran round the 
building. .The Hawk rested just opposite my window, but did not appa- 
rently see me; it had a bone in its talons, and was soon hard at work 
endeavouring to tear off what little meat there was on it. But in about a 
minute’s time two Crows arrived on the scene; one flew behind the Hawk, 
and the other in front. The bird behind kept. coming up and giving a 
smart tug at the. tail of the Hawk, which made him turn half-round to 
drive the bold intruder off, but still holding its bone. After this had been 
done several times the Crow gave an extra hard pull at the Hawk’s tail ; 
_ that bird then disengaged its foot from the bone, and, turning -half-round, 
——— a 
——— 
made a lunge towards the Crow to drive it away; but immediately the 
Hawk had let go the bone agd turned round, the other Crow in front, which 
