23 
that continent, or whether it has always existed in the ex¬ 
treme south of New Zealand, is only a matter of conjecture. 
It appeared on the south side of Cook’s Strait, for the first 
time within the memory of the oldest native inhabitants, in 
the winter of 1856. They remained for about three months 
and then departed as suddenly as they had come. During 
the two years that followed this bird was never heard of 
again in any part of the North Island; but in the winter of 
1858 it again crossed the strait in greater numbers than 
before. During the four succeeding years it regularly 
wintered in the North Island, recrossing the strait on the 
approach of spring. Since the year 1862 it has been a 
permanent resident. It builds a shallow nest laced together 
with long horse-hair, and generally suspended by side-fasten¬ 
ings to hanging branchlets or climbing vines; and it lays 
three (sometimes four) eggs, of a lovely pale blue colour. 
Genus ANTHORNIS. (Peculiar to New Zealand.) 
1. Antiiornis melanura, Sparrm. Bell-bird. “ Korimaho. 
(Case II. Nos. 1 and 4, male; Case IX. No. 9, female; 
Case X. No. 16, female.) 
This is the bird whose praises were sung by the illustrious 
navigator Cook a hundred years ago. It was formerly the 
commonest bird in New Zealand, but is now almost extinct 
on the North Island, being met with only on the wooded 
islets in the large inland lakes or off the coast. It is still 
plentiful in the South Island. 
