The Weka 
199 
Family i 
Rallidae 
Ocydromus the woodhen, or Maori lien 
weka 
This fearless, inquisitive, thieving, pugnacious, and enter¬ 
taining bird was at one time extremely common m all parts of 
the islands, open lands and bush-lands alike; and in many parts 
it is still common, being glad enough of the companionship of 
man, if only he would display similar feelings of friendliness 
but he has branded the bird a vagabond and a marauder. Its 
wings are too short to be of use for anything but running and 
fighting, and it is able to do both well. On casual acquaintance, 
its bad qualities seem to outnumber and overshadow its good 
ones; but further acquaintance will modify the first conclusion, 
if it does not reverse it. The cry has no great variety, and 
the pitch is very constant. The call of the two sexes differ in 
pitch, the note of the female being the higher and shriller. The 
common call is as in (1), and the opening note is usually g or a. 
I have heard the variation shewn in (2), but not often. As I 
sat in the bush one day I heard a weka call as in (3), and on 
one replying as in (4), the first continued as in (5), the two 
birds approaching each other. As the male neared the female, 
he commenced the peculiar drumming sound as in (6), the notes 
being uttered slowly at first, more quickly when the birds were 
together. The sound is like that produced by knocking the 
end of an empty cask, or by the escaping air bubbles when a 
big bottle is being filled held under water. The birds, hidden 
during the calling, came into view, and on seeing me walked 
off with deliberate steps, one behind the other, heads and tails 
down, as if conscious of having been guilty of some 
misdemeanour. 
On Kapiti a pair had their particular run close by the cot¬ 
tage, and on the male calling as in (7), the female invariably 
replied at once in (8), her reply often sounding immediately 
after the first or second note of the male. When calling, he 
