198 Sydney Porter—Notes on New Zealand Birds


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dense almost tropical vegetation shelters many of New Zealand’s

rarest birds, the great Grey Kiwis, the Wattled Crows, Robins,

Fernbirds, and many others which are now almost extinct on the


mainland.


Many were the dark and sinister deeds perpetrated by the early

sealers and the crews of the old whaling vessels in these quiet

waters—but that is another story unfitted for the pages of this

Magazine.


Although to the casual observer conditions appear to be the

same as they were aeons ago, sinister enemies have crept into

this sylvan paradise. Rats, cats, etc., introduced many years ago

by the crews from the whaling vessels, have fattened and thrived

on the feathered prey which they found so plentiful. They have

multiplied to an alarming extent and take a very heavy toll of the

bird life. This in time will lead to the extermination of certain

species such as the South Island Robin, the Wattled Crows, and

the South Island Thrush. Introduced deer of several species have

done a great deal of damage in destroying the undergrowth.


To get back to the Cormorants, these birds are very conspicuous

with their black and white plumage, sitting on the nests with their

mates resting beside them. The large nests of sticks, whitened

by the droppings of the birds, are built between the forks of the

rather sparse branches which the birds have cleared of all foliage.

I often wondered how the birds managed to get the first sticks to

lie in place. This feat must require a considerable amount of

patience and ingenuity on the part of the birds. There is none of

the dirt or smell usually associated with Cormorant rookeries when

built on the rocks, for the nests being built over the waters, all the

droppings and debris are washed away.


All species are exceptionally tame and one can approach

within a few feet of the sitting birds. Unfortunately for the birds,

nearly all the New Zealand Cormorants are very confiding, and

this has been their undoing, for all species are ruthlessly

slaughtered around the coasts of New Zealand by the colonists

who state that they feed upon large quantities of fish and who

want but the slightest excuse for slaying any bird. Before the



