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stormy night, and were never seen again. Active search was made in the vicinity, day and night, for 
several weeks, but without any satisfactory result. Many persons declared having heard them, from 
time to time, on the neighbouring hills, and guided by these reports the fugitives were traced through 
Sir James Prendergast’s grounds to the Episcopalian Cemetery, where the scent was hopelessly lost, 
although the old sexton solemnly averred he had heard “ most all kinds o’ noises among them 
graves ”! 
Owing to my absence from home when the last-mentioned pair arrived, I never had an opportu- 
nity of studying them ; but my son has furnished me with the following interesting note : — 
“ The three birds agreed very well together from the first ; but after the first few days I noticed 
that our old bird was scarcely considerate enough to the lady, 4 wolfing ’ all the meat and leaving her 
to take her chance. So I separated them, placing the new couple in the adjoining compartment, 
with only wire netting between. It was interesting to see them come out of their boxes towards 
dusk, which appears to be their favourite feeding-time, and take up their station on their respective 
rocks. On a piece of meat being thrown to one of them, it will stoop down and gaze very reflectively 
at it for a minute or more, and then march off to its perch to devour it. I have noticed that they 
frequently make a whistling noise, and sometimes a note very much like a Turkey chuckling. 
Another sound they produce is exactly like the mewing of a cat. Solemn as they are, they seem to 
be inquisitive birds. If you make a whispering noise, all three of them will turn round and gaze 
steadfastly at you, remaining as motionless as a statue, until the whispering has ceased, when they 
immediately relax. During the day they remain concealed in the boxes, but they appear to keep up 
a constant low chatter with each other. Altogether they are very amusing birds in an aviary.” 
There are two specimens of the egg in my son’s collection. One of these is almost spherical, 
measuring T70 inch in length by T55 in breadth; the other is broadly oval, measuring 1-9 by T5. 
They are perfectly white, and the spherical one has some minute granular papillae on its surface. I 
have examined several other specimens, and the former seems to be the more typical one. 
The two forms of Strigidce described above are the only ones inhabiting New Zealand of which 
we have, as yet, any positive knowledge * But the natives are acquainted with another species, which 
they describe as being very diminutive in size, and strictly arboreal in its habits. This is, no doubt, 
the bird indicated by Mr. Ellman as Strix parvissima f (‘Zoologist,’ 1861). Mr. J. D. Enys informed 
me that he once captured an Owl “ standing only five inches high,” and that it was perfectly tame 
and gentle. Mr. Potts records, on hearsay evidence, several instances of the occurrence in the pro- 
vincial district of Canterbury of an Owl “ about the size of a Kingfisher ” ; and the accounts which 
he has received appear to confirm one another in all material points, the gentleness of this Owl 
when captured being in singular contrast to the habitual fierceness of Spiloglaux novae zealandice. 
In the British Museum Catalogue (Birds, vol. ii. p. 43) Mr. Sharpe refers Strix parvissima , 
Ellman, to Scops novae zealandice, Bonaparte ; but I can find no evidence that the unique specimen of 
the latter in the Leiden Museum ever came from New Zealand, the only authority for this being a 
label in Temminck’s handwriting, “Nouvelle Zelande,” but without locality. 
* Dr. Finsch says “ Mr. Sharpe includes Strix delicatula, Gould, in the avifauna of New Zealand (‘ Erehus and Terror,’ 
2nd edition, p. 23) on account of my statement (Journ. fur Ornith. 1867, p. 318). But I long ago stated (Journ. fur Ornith. 
1870, p. 245) that I had made a mistake on this point.” 
t “ Amongst the desiderata of our public collections, a very small Owl {Athene parvissima) has for some time held a place. 
Many doubt its existence, few have seen it, fewer still have formed any note or observation concerning it. From the information 
that has been gleaned about this rare bird, it would appear that one of its habitats used to be the woods about the Bangitata 
river. One was captured with the hand on the bank of a creek, at no great distance from Mount Peel forest .” — Out in the Open. 
