208 
BIRD-LIFE. 
retiring, that any observation of them at all is exceed¬ 
ingly difficult. Each of the species referred to is, so far 
as we know, confined to one island, or, at most, to a 
few neighbouring ones. Still more singular than the 
Cassowary is the Apteryx, or Kiwi kiwi (. Apteryx australis ). 
According to the opinion of modern geologists, the 
Southern Archipelago is not the most recent, but the 
oldest portion of the globe. This opinion is based on 
the fact that one of the earliest essays of creative power 
is found there, in the shape of an imperfect bird. As in 
the case of other Ostriches, its wings are merely rudi¬ 
mentary, and thus it is of necessity confined to the 
ground. Unlike the others, however, it is not diurnal in 
its habits, but nocturnal, spending the day concealed 
either in holes formed naturally, or in hollows made by 
itself. It only emerges from these after sunset; and, like 
our Woodcock, feeds on worms and insects. This creature 
necessarily appears more remarkable to us than either 
the Ostrich or Penguin, as it only finds a parallel in the 
Ornithorhyncus, or Duck-billed Platypus of Australia. 
To name some of the swimming birds characteristic of 
this part of the world, which is so rich in eccentric 
forms, I may mention the New Holland Goose ( Cereopsis 
novce hollandice) and the Semi-palmated Goose ( Anseranas 
melanoleuca), two birds of limited swimming capacity, 
which, in spite of their Goose-like forms, are much 
better adapted for moving on land than for swimming. 
They bear, indeed, but a vague resemblance to Geese. 
I must not omit the now well-known Black Swan ( Gy gnus 
atratus ). 
The distinctive features of the Southern Archipelago 
are strikingly shown in its animal kingdom. The 
abrupt and manifold diversity of the living creatures 
