v°i-xxiv. -1 STIDOLPH, Birds of IVairarapa Plows 279 
iViZo J 
enough, the notes of yet another resembled closely those of the Bell- 
bird. One bird invariably ended his performance with a “tut-tut.’ 1 
approached very close to a singing bird. In the height of its con¬ 
cert, another Tui alighted on the branch only one foot from the sing¬ 
ing bird, and facing him, remained quite motionless for fully four 
minutes, while he poured forth his melodies. The performer would 
raise the feathers on his head and, before giving his usual notes, 
would utter a soft mixture of warbles, scarcely audible. It would 
end up with a vehement “ow, ow,” at the same time giving a slight 
toss of the head. I have seen a Tui chase a Starling and a Kingfisher 
from a tree on which it was perched. In January I have observed 
Tuis feeding on the berries of the totara. This bird is certainly in¬ 
creasing in numbers in the Wairarapa. 
Sacred Kingfisher (Halcyon sanctus) .—On the 14th October, 19Zo, 
we noted a pair attempting to make a nesting-hole in a dead willow 
trunk. Five holes were attempted in the trunk, but one especially, 
received the bulk of attention. The birds would take up a position 
ten or fifteen feet away and fly straight to the hole, and a decided 
“whack” would be heard when the bill struck the wood. Occasion¬ 
ally the bird would stop at the hole and peck away pieces of wood. 
When a bird struck the tree, it would utter “chop-chop,” and when on 
its return to a bough, “urp-urp-urp-urp-urp” rather quickly. As 
soon as it settled again, a faint chirp would be'heard, followed almost 
immediately by a note resembling “ewah, ewah.” These operations 
and performances continued for some time, both birds working and 
generally alternately. Eventually one flew away, when the other, 
after one more dig at the hole, flew to a prominent position and 
uttered “querk, querk, querk,” and disappeared. After an absence 
of about five minutes, one bird returned and called “keow, keow, 
keow,” which immediately brought its mate home. Then com¬ 
mencing with the “ewah” note, boring operations started again. How¬ 
ever, a subsequent visit showed that the birds had deserted the pro¬ 
posed nesting-site. At the time I left the district, this bird was 
increasing in numbers. i. . 
Quail Hawk (Nesierax novw-seelandiae) .—A specimen shot in the 
early part of December, 1922, near Masterton, gave the following 
measurements:—Length, 19.25 in.; bill, 1 in.; wing^ from flexure, 
10.75 in.; tarsus, 2.25 in. Ceres and legs, lemon. Sex unknown, prob¬ 
ably a female. On the 23rd and 24th June, 1924, two more birds 
were obtained near Masterton. They measured as follows:—(a) 
length, 15 in.; bill, 1 in.; wing from flexure, 9.25 in.; tarsus, 2.25 in. 
Ceres and legs, light sea-green. Eye, dark brown. Immature ( .); 
(b) length, 17 in.; bill, .875 in.; wing from flexure, 9.5 in.; tarsus, 
2.25 in. Ceres and legs, lemon. .Eye, dark brown. The taxidermist 
who skinned this bird said he believed it to be a female. I am not at 
all satisfied that two species of Nesierax inhabit New Zealand. 1 
have therefore placed the three above-mentioned specimens under 
Nesierax novse-seelandiae. Though the two latter would probably be 
regarded as examples of the Bush Hawk ( N . pottsi — australis) by 
some ornithologists. ,. . ... 
Banded Land-Rail (Iiypotaenidia philippensis) —I noted this bird 
on one occasion. According to reliable observers, it was fairly 
numerous in the district some years ago. It is certainly rare now. 
Brown Bittern ( Botaurus poiciloptilus) .— Resident. I can state 
definitely that this bird breeds in the district, as on the 15th Novem¬ 
ber, 1923, a person rang up and told me a strange bird was seen in a 
suburb of Masterton. Investigation proved it to be a young Bittern, 
undoubtedly reared in a nearby swamp. 
DoubVbanded Dotterel (Charadrius bicinctus) —These birds fre¬ 
quent ploughed ground and stonv paddocks as well as the river-beds. 
On 30th September, 1923, Mr. Wilkinson found a nest on the Wain- 
gawa river-bed. It contained two eggs, and on the 7th October con¬ 
tained three, the usual clutch. The eggs were merely placed in a 
