14



Sydney Porter—Notes on New Zealand Birds



To cut a long story short ; after an interminable length of time,

about fifteen hours, but it seemed more like fifty to me, we arrived

in Auckland. The birds were almost exhausted by this time, and my

first action was to hail a taxi, ask for the nearest fish shop, and purchase

filleted flounder. This was cut up in the taxi with the aid of the driver’s

knife and administered to the starving Kingfishers. They seemed to

thrive for a time on this. Then we went away for a week-end on the

West Coast, and the birds were taken with us. We found an abundance

of live food on the beach for them, tiny flounders, shrimps, crabs, etc.

Then we went back to town and away to Little Barrier Island. The

birds had to be left. Some kind friends took them and for a time they

seemed to do well. Then the smaller one died. By the time I got back

the survivor was nearly adult size, but in a few weeks he, too, joined

his companion. I was sorry, for he was a dear little thing and so tame,

but there is little live food to be got in a city, and I am afraid that

the raw meat and fish were insufficient to support him. So vanished

all my dreams of bringing these interesting birds to England, and

I regretted wasting the lives of two of New Zealand’s most beautiful

birds.



The White-breasted Tit (Petroica toitoi)


Wherever there are patches of native “ bush ” one is sure to see

this delightful little creature. In all the heavily forested regions it is

very common and perhaps one of the most confiding and familiar

denizens of those parts ; and upon entering the forest one is almost

sure to make its acquaintance before that of any other bird. It is

exceedingly inquisitive and will come within a few feet and make

a thorough examination of the intruder. It is usually the strikingly

coloured male that is in evidence and not the sombrely clad female ;

that keeps in the background.


Although in its demeanour it exhibits the same restless activity

as the European Tits, it is not closely related to them. Around the

cultivated patches and clearings on the edge of the remaining forest

areas, this bird becomes exceedingly familiar, very much like our own

native robin, watching the gardener at work and frequently alighting

on his spade as it comes for the grubs which are turned over in the



