NEW ZEALAND BIRDS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 29, 4 February 1933, Page 11 (Supplement)

NEW ZEALAND BIRDS.

THEIR LIFE HISTORIES.

A NATURALIST'S ADVENTURES

(By R. A. FALLA. MA.)

There are about 213 species of birds on the official list of New Zealand birds is compiled by ornithologists, sea birds and land birds sharing the honours about equally in point of numbers. Excluding the rarer species in both classes and the casual migrants, we are left with a comparatively small number of birds that are conspicuous and common enough to be recognised and named by the average New Zealander, even in country districts. In the most favourably situated bush settlements 20, species would be a good list for a day's observation. How many persons, iideed, qould w.ith certainty name a dozen native birds seen in any one day? Distinguished and observant visitors from overseas have remarked frequently in recent years on the singular lack of Nature knowledge which characterises this otherwise- intelligent community. The charge may be admitted. New Zealandcrs who farm, fish for sport or livelihood, or go down to the eea in ships are, as a rule, less observant in matters of natural history than folk similarly occupied in, say, Great Britain and Northern Europe. But in admitting the charge we may also plead extenuating circumstances. As far as birds are concerned, the last century has seen such rapid changes in the face of the country that many kinds have become extinct, others have become gradually scarcer, and only a few have become thoroughly adapted to changed conditions. It is. not thus in older settled countries, where one generation of men may know the same birds and bird haunts as their ancestors knew, and change is so gradual as to be imperceptible. Another factor likely to be overlooked is the influence of tradition and literature. English-speaking countries are remarkable for the number and strength of the various organisations interested in bird life, and for progressive legislation for its protection, he enlightened public sentiment behind ich movements owes its strength as iuch to tradition as to any widespread ibit of observation. Nursery rhymes ud folk stories about robins and blackirds may be the root of the sentiment. ; grows on immortal poems about skyrks, nightingales and cuckoos, and ius the way is paved for appreciation f such modern Nature writers as the ite W. H. Hudson or the dozens of thers who lack his literary genius, but lake up for it by faithful records of bservation. There must be more than hundred new bird books published very year in England alone, and apparntly the demand is unabated. Inexhaustible Subject. As far as our knowledge of New iealand birds is concerned, its tradiional basis exists only in Maori myth nd legend, and the books of European imes dealing exclusively with birds do ot number a dozen in all. Scientific escription of the species began with the cientists who accompanied the early oyagers, and reached some degree of ompleteness in the five volumes pubished between 1874 and 1905 by the ite Sir Walter Buller. Except for this ;reat work there appeared during the ieriod only one noteworthy book by an ndependent-> observer, T. H. Potts' .elightful. "Out in the Open," now out f print. Since then the scarcity of Juller's volumes, and ; recent additions o our knowledge, have treated a lemand for cheap a.nd concise books ummarising the main facts known. Lhree such books are available, invaluable for reference to people already nterested in birds, but not pretending o enter the field of inspirational literature. This field during the last 30 years las held only one writer on New Zeaand birds, H. Guthrie Smith, whose >ooks combine charm of style with intiuate revelation of the secrets of some >f our rarest and shyest birds. Now ihcre enters E. F, Stead with a new :ontribution* to this inexhaustible lubfect. Mr. Stead is already well known in tfew Zealand and overseas for his field vork, photographic studies and lectures >n birds. In his home district, Canter - jury, his opinion and judgment in maters of acclimatisation and conservation lave long been valued. He must have jeen urged often during tlio past few fears to publish some results of his field work, but he has appar:ntly resistant the temptation to dissimte his resources on scattered articles ni(l incomplete accounts, and is now ible to give us one of those satisfying books which' suggest an ample reserve ,nd more to follow. This much is implied by W. P. Pycroft, of the British Museum of Natural History, who contributes the note of appreciation printed on the dust cover, and presumably the modest single star under the title signifies "volume one." Eighteen species are included —six land birds and a dozen seabirds —and each chapter is complete in itself. Illustrations, which should be mentioned last here, demand immediate attention because of their exceptional quality —92 of them to illustrate the 18 birds, and each one attractive and full of interest. .They illustrate more, in fact, than the mere appearance of the birds. No one, for example, could be hazy about the exact effect in nature of protective coloration after seeing the pictures of wrybilled plovers at home somewhere in the Rakaia Gorge; or about the reptilian characteristics of some baby birds after viewing a young black shag hanging on to a stick with "tooth and claw"; or about the perfection of avian flight as illustrated in a dozen beautiful studies. The photographs alone are sufficient to rank this book with the best modern works on bird life published anywhere in the world.

Close-up Studies. In the text there is uniformity in the length and construction of the chapters thai will enable students of ornithology to use the work for reliable reference on matters of distribution, nesting seasons, plumages, eggs and other details of scientific value. But along with this uniformity is a variety and crispness that will hold the interest of non-scien-tific readers. The author has captured and passed on much of the freshness of the scenes amongst which he has studied birds, whether on the wind-swept islets of the south or in the sheltered shrubberies of his own garden. The individual peculiarities of each bird are indicated, not by minute description, but by apt phrases and appropriate anecdotes. The story of "Little Mr. Dotterel, by its dramatic and humorous appeal, presents an unforgettable impression of a very lovable little bird. The familiar fan tail and übiquitous "blight bird are treated in an original fashion and from new points of view, 1 loodlights, both literal and metaphorical, have been shed on the night life of petrels on uninhabited islands, and every chapter reflects independent observation ana originality.

Tfi the matter of bird protection Mr. Stead is, not a sentimentalist. He recognises that over-much protection may be as serious an interference with the balance of Nature as wanton destruction, and that thinning out of a species may, under certain circumstances, be a good thing. There are many statements^in the book that contradict popular opinion, as, for example, on the value of shags of different species, but those who disagree will have to answer a wellconstructed case and able advocacy. This is essentially a New Zealand book, and in its account of the adventures of a New Zealand naturalist from school days on will appeal to all are interested in birds. It is a worthy successor to the bird books of the past, and sets a new standard. • "The Life Histories of New Zealand Birds," by E. F. Stead (The Secrets Pubj lishing Co., Ltd., liondon, 1932).