THE KAGU. 
Rhinochetus jubatus. 
Plate XLY. 
I he Kagu is an inhabitant of the little-known island of New Caledonia, recently taken possession of by the 
h rench, and was first described by some French Naturalists in a memoir devoted to the Ornithology of the 
new French Colony. In December, 1861, Dr. George Bennett, of Sydney, N.S.W., well-known for his many 
liberal donations to the Society’s Menagerie, received a living example of the Kagu from his friend and 
correspondent, Mr. D. N. Joubert, of New Caledonia. Dr. Bennett lost no time in forwarding this bird as a 
present to the Society’s Menagerie, where it arrived in excellent condition on the 22nd of April, 1862. In the 
following years other specimens of this curious bird were received from the same liberal benefactor; so that 
the Society have now several examples of this very interesting and, until recently, unknown form in their 
Aviaries. Mr. Bartlett, the Superintendent of the Society’s Gardens, gives the following account of the habits 
of this bird, as observed in a state of captivity— 
“With its crest erect and wings spread out, the Kagu runs or skips about, sometimes pursuing and driving 
before him all the birds that are confined with him in the same aviary (amongst which are several Blue 
Water-hens), and evidently enjoying the fun of seeing them frightened. At other times he will seize the 
end of his wing or tail, and run round holding it in his bill. From a piece of paper or dry leaf he derives 
much amusement, by tossing it about and running after it. During his frolic he will thrust his bill into the 
ground and spread out his wings, kick his legs into the air. and then tumble about as if in a fit. At other 
times he appears intent upon catching worms; he steps slowly, his neck close to his body, his crest flat on his 
back, all his feathers smooth and close, he raises one foot, and, with two or three gentle strokes, he paws the 
ground; swiftly he darts his bill into the earth, and draws forth a worm; a sudden shake, and it is swallowed; 
again he runs; stopping suddenly, he makes another dart, and thus continues to capture this kind of food. 
With respect to feeding, this bird differs much from the Heron-family, seeking out in every hole and corner 
worms, snails, and other living things, whenever they are not in motion. As soon as a snail is found, he 
breaks its shell by repeated knocks upon the ground, and after shaking the fragments of the broken shell off 
swallows the animal. In no instance, however, that I have observed, does this bird eat bread, seed, or any 
kind of vegetable. But he strictly confines himself to insects, and other animal substances.” 
In its native wilds in New Caledonia, the Kagu, as Dr. Bennett tells us, is usually seen about the sea 
coast, and by the sides of the rivers. In some parts of the island they were formerly very numerous, but are 
now becoming scarce, being much valued for food both by the natives and the French settlers, and numbers 
of them being shot and snared for the table. The nest and eggs have not been discovered, although Dr. 
Bennett s correspondents in New Caledonia are making great exertions for this purpose. 
The alliances of the Kagu in the natural system are certainly with the Cranes ( Gruidce ), and Kails 
(Rallidce), though it diverges from the ordinary members of those families in several important particulars. 
