Breeding Successes in New Zealand



27



one hopped out of the nest early in the morning, perching upon a tea-

tree twig about 4 inches from the nest. During the day, the second one

followed, taking the position of the first, which had moved about

2 inches higher up oil the shrub. They remained there the rest of the

day.


The breast feathers showed very pale green, but the tail feathers

were still in the pin feather stage, while the back was well covered.

On Thursday, 30th January, the young birds were seen moving about

the aviary somewhat freely. On this afternoon, when looking for the

youngsters, I saw one with its head through \ in. link netting,

apparently hurt. It could not have been there long, for a few moments

before I saw it climbing into the netting. I rushed in and released the

bird, as it could have done itself had it moved upwards at all or down¬

wards, and placed it upon a branch. In a few moments it was calling

continuously to its parents, who flew excitedly round it. I retreated

from the aviary, but looked through a peep-hole, and saw the hen

feed it almost immediately. Later, it looked tired and droopy, but next

morning had almost recovered.


On Friday, the two youngsters spent the day in the Australian

bottle-brush shrub. The next day, Saturday, a cyclone commenced

to blow and on Sunday attained full cyclonic force. The memory of

that disastrous period and the damage done all over New Zealand

remains vividly with us even now. Salt spray blown many miles from

the ocean together with the speed of the wind burnt vegetation in all

exposed positions. These two young Sugar Birds had been away from

the nest only a few days before this disastrous cyclone went its mad

w r ay over New Zealand. One youngster at least was seen alive on the

Sunday afternoon. The little hen, faithful mother that she was, full

of courage and dominated by her instinct to feed her young, battled

with the wind and was seen several times to fly with her beak full of

food to the young, somewhere sheltering in the long grass of the aviary.


Of avicultural interest, too, was the fact that the steamer on which

Dr. Hopkinson, the Vice-President of the English Avicultural Society,

was travelling was hove-to 100 miles from port instead of being safely

at her moorings alongside the wharf.


After the cyclone, only one Sugar Bird was seen. On Sunday,

16th February, 1936, the Sugar Bird must have been almost independent,



