THE SADDLEBACK 163 
acquaintance with Stewart Island except its south- 
west corner, I have never there heard or seen 
the species. Its usual cry, too, is perfectly unlike 
that of any other species of bird, and can be 
heard, moreover, at a considerable distance. I 
doubt, therefore, if the breed is resident on Stewart 
Island ; perhaps it may not have been there even 
in pre-European times. Supposing, however, that 
the Saddleback did at one time live in small 
numbers on the mainland of Stewart Island, it 
has probably, on account of its selection of nesting 
sites at low elevations, perished long ago by the 
depredations of the grey rat and of the old English 
black rat. Even the Wekas, the police of the 
woods, would find it difficult to conserve a breed 
that does not nest until its second season, which 
lays but a brace of eggs, and whose chicks reach 
adolescence slowly. The small clutch, slow growth 
of chicks, and retardation of sexual growth may 
argue hardihood and long life normally, but with 
eggs destroyed and chicks slain ere feathered, 
what would these qualities avail ? 
Unlike other chicks known to me, the Saddle- 
back twins had on every occasion to be roused 
for their meals. Not even the jar of the nest 
structure consequent on the arrival of parents was 
sufficient to arouse the little sleepy-heads. They 
had to be gently progged into wakefulness. This 
lethargy did not, however, proceed from any 
