Sydney Porter—Notes on New Zealand Birds



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from persecution they were very tame, allowing one to approach

within a few feet of them.


Our object when landing on the island was to pitch our camp as

near as possible to where the birds were the most numerous, so we

settled on a spot beneath a karaka-tree, which was covered with

ripening fruit. This fruit is shaped like a date, tapering at one end,

and is a bright orange colour when ripe. Here the Pigeons were in

plenty and one of the first sounds to be heard in the mornings as we

opened our eyes was the loud swish of their wings as they flew over

our tent to alight on the tree for their morning feed.


Despite their great beauty they are very heavy and clumsy in the

trees, seeming almost to fall off when reaching for the fruit. It was

very interesting to watch the birds testing whether the fruit was ripe

enough to eat. It was seized in the bill and gently pinched all

over. If not ripe it was left, and the same process repeated on another

berry until a ripe one was found when it was torn off and swallowed

whole.


I used every endeavour to obtain a pair of these beautiful Pigeons

to bring back home, but found that it was impossible to obtain any

on the mainland though I saw a few in captivity. It was just past

the breeding season when I arrived in New Zealand, or I might have

been able to get a pair of young ones. In the old days many colonists

possessed tame Pigeons which they had reared from the nest, usually

on bread and milk. There should be no difficulty in keeping this bird

for the diet upon which it seems to live for years on in captivity in

New Zealand is bread and milk and mashed potatoes, a most unsatis¬

factory food one would think for a Fruit Pigeon. Kept in a state of

liberty, the Pigeon makes a very interesting pet, but when incarcerated

in a cage or aviary they are very dull and lethargic, as most Fruit

Pigeons are apt to be.


Like most other New Zealand birds it is very pugnacious and many

were the fights we watched around the karaka-tree. Sometimes a bird

would take possession of the tree driving all others away. Even when

he had satisfied his own hunger he would still keep guard. In the

forests we often saw two males fighting over the possession of a female.

Even in captivity the pugnacious disposition asserts itself for I was



