BIRD LIFE ON A NEW ZEALAND RUN. 27 
heard of in any part of the North Island, but in 1858 they again 
■crossed the strait dividing the two islands, and in much larger 
numbers. For the next four years they wintered with us, re- 
crossing the strait upon the approach of spring. Since then 
they have become permanent residents, and their ceaseless 
twitter is everywhere to be heard. 
Many English and a few Australian birds have been im- 
ported and most successfully acclimatised ; from the former 
country, grouse, robins, nightingales, blackbirds, starlings, 
thrushes, larks, sparrows, goldfinches and others, while from 
Australia have been obtained the magpie, minah, and black 
swan. With this last bird, which is no good for shooting, and 
very numerous, the experiment is being tried of taking away its 
own eggs and substituting those of the common tame goose. 
It is hoped in this way that we shall obtain a wild goose ! 
Several of these acclimatised English and Australian birds 
have already made their appearance on the run. Sixteen 5'ears 
ago, when first it was taken up, larks and black swans had pre- 
ceded us. I remember, however, the advent of the first brace of 
sparrows, and how pleased we were to hear their homely chat- 
tering. The earliest improvements on the run were done by 
white labour, and while a number of men were resident on one 
spot our sparrows increased and multiplied. Later on our work 
was chiefly done by native contract, the Maories camping out in 
various parts of the run, and then the sparrows almost entirely- 
disappeared. They increased again when we took to growing 
oats, but the establishment of the frozen meat trade was another 
serious blow to them, for we found then that turnips year after 
year were the best paying crop, and our oats were bought off 
the run. Now only five or six couple reside at the homestead. 
Birds do not, however, always come in pairs. For two 
successive years an Australian minah appeared on the run. It 
arrived in spring each time, and used to sit rather disconsolately 
outside the fowl yard, seeking to chum up with the fowls, who 
scornfully rejected its advances. Each time it stayed for about 
three days and then disappeared. This present spring (August) 
of 1892, seven years later, a brace have appeared, and I have no 
doubt they will stay, and that in a few years we shall see their 
descendants sitting on the lazy longwool’s backs and diligently 
searching for ticks. Once I noticed one of these Australian 
starlings dead, tangled in the wool of a living sheep. About six 
years ago in early summer a cock goldfinch appeared on the run ; 
I used to see it day after day as I went over to the wool shed at 
shearing time; it was always alone, and I do not think the 
female was sitting, as no one ever observed young birds later in 
the season; next year, however, it reappeared in the same spot, 
this time with a wife, and now there are many scores of these 
birds in different parts of the run. In 1888 two Australian 
magpies took up their abode in a patch of native bush close to 
the homestead ; unfortunately they were shot, and none others 
