144



Sydney Porter—Notes on New Zealand Birds



Like many of New Zealand’s indigenous birds, this species has

no near affinities and stands in a genus on its own. It is slightly

larger in size than a Starling, of a glossy black, with the whole

of the wing coverts, back, and upper and lower tail coverts bright

chestunt. At the base of the stout pointed beak below the eye is a

bright-orange wattle. This species is evidently in an evolutionary

phase in regard to the juvenile plumage, for in some districts

there is a distinct immature stage in which the young are a

uniform cinerious brown, and these do not assume the adult plumage

for a considerable time. On the Hen Island and on Kapiti Island

the young leave the nest in the adult plumage. There are several

species (I believe) which show the same tendency, Pennant’s

Parrakeet being one of them. In the early days the immature

Saddlebacks were described as another species and called by Puller

the Jack Bird.


At the beginning of the last century the Saddleback was one

of the most characteristic birds of the New Zealand forest, and

was well known to the Maoris, who wove many legends about it.

Now it is absolutely unknown to the majority of New Zealanders.


It moves through the forests very rapidly, exercising most of the

time its great vocal powers. It mainly inhabits the upper tiers

of the foliage and does not, as far as I noticed, descend to the

ground, though this is no criterion, for my acquaintance with this

interesting bird was all too short. Its food is mainly the large

grubs found in decaying wood, which the bird procures with the

aid of its chisel-like beak. That this species is not difficult to keep

in captivity is proved by the fact that several were kept for many

weeks on the Hen Island prior to their being transferred to Kapiti

Island, where they were released. Otherwise there is no record of

its ever being kept. And now there is not the remotest chance that

it will ever be seen in the aviaries of aviculturists even in New

Zealand, for, like the Stitchbird, it is most rigorously protected,

at least in the North, for in the South on the one or two small

islets oh Stewart Island it is rather at anyone’s mercy. But it is

to be hoped that no effort will be spared to save this vanishing relic

of New Zealand’s unique avifauna.



