WAYS OF THE WILD.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 147, 23 June 1934, Page 1 (Supplement)

WAYS OF THE WILD.

ROOKS.

not common IN N.Z.

(By A. T. PYCROFT.)

Books were introduced into New Zealand from England in the 'sixties and 'seventies at Nelson, Canterbury and Auckland. Those liberated in Auckland nested in the gardens in the Domain and in 1872 the Auckland Acclimatisation Society reported eight nests. The society's report states: —"Unhappily a night review of the volunteers took place just as incubation commenced, when the firing caused the majority of the rooks to forsake their nests, so that only three small broods wera hatched." In January a severe epidemic broke out amongst them, which destroyed several. In 1873 several pairs built and nested, but in the following year's report it was stated they were not doing so well. The young had died, and it was suggested that ;the climate was too hot for them. They were to be seen in the Domain up till the early 'nineties, and later at Epsom, but they have now entirely disappeared. It is not known what became of the birds introduced at Nelson; they also disappeared. Eef erring to those liberated at Cliristchurch Captain Hutton stated in 1890 thai "they are well naturalised about Christchurch, but do not now increase much, possibly owing to poisoned grain." Then later on, Mr. M. Thomson, writing in 1916, states, "They are fairly common south of Christchurcli, but are strictly localised and have hardly spread from the spot where they were originally liberated. One of the largest nesting places is near Christchurcli. The nests are built high up in some blue gum trees. They are large structures, composed. of sticks and mud, and lined with grass." Eooks are very common in parte of Hawke's Bay. The original stock probably migrated from Auckland. Very strong remarks have been made by Hawke's Bay farmers and orchardists that the rook does much damage to crops. Oliver, author of 'JNew Zealand Birds," states that the rook does an immense amount of good by digging grubs out of pastures. Its depredations on sparrows and skylarks, it eats the eggs and young, must be counted to its credit. Amongst small birds sparrows and skylarks are the farmers' worst enemies. A certain amount of damage is, however, done to grain crops, both when first sown and when ripe, and to potato crops. In England rooks band together in the autumn to plunder corn fields, often tearing up thousands of newly planted seedlings, while in severe weather they attack the roote of turnips, or devour such small birds as have become too enfeebled by .want of food to elude their enemies. The young are mainly reared on noxious insects and field mice.

Rooks anfl Crows. W. P. Pycraft, writing about rooks, states that people are apt to speak carelessly of rooks and crows as if thoy were alternative names for the same bird. But the crow is a distinct species, differing from the rook, not merely in the matter of its plumage, but also in its habits. The crow is a solitary bird, but the rook is not. •' • Rooks being largely graminivorous and insectivorous find an almost unlimited supply of food. There is no competition among them for food. The crow, on the other hand, lives upon carrion, with eggs and young birds in their season. But dead bodies are not so numerous as live ones, hence crows are less abundant and have to be less sociable if they are to keep themselves from starvation. The adult rook can be distinguished from the crow by its bare face, and there are other differences. The rook's plumage shimmers with gleams of blue, purple, violet and green reflections; the crow's shows a gloss of green and purple, but the green dominates. Also the crow has a' heavier beak. There are no European crows in New Zealand, but there are two native crows, the blue wattled crow in the North Island and the orango wattled crow in the South Island. These birds' plumage is bluish grey, the quills and tail are slaty black. Remains of an extinct New Zealand crow have been found. The Australian white backcd magpie, now plentiful in parts of North Auckland and North Canterbury, is also a member of the crow family. This family, of which the rook is a member, but a distinct species, has an almost world-wide range, although it is unrepresented in the islands lying between New Zealand and New Caledonia and Hawaii. G. Iv. Yeates, an English observer, has studied the life of the rook from treetop level and published his observations. Previous books deal with the subject from ground level. This author follows the rook's life history , from the break up of the great communal roosts in early March to their resumption in late November. His most significant "work is the collection of evidence from his tree hide during the period between the courtship of the par- . ents and the fledging of the young. Feeding the female plays a definite part in i courtship and continues for about a month after the first egg is laid. Slating takes place on the nest only. Mobbing is a punishment, not for theft of sticks but. for promiscuity; the maledoes not share in incubation and the supposed posting of sentinels when feeding on the ground is a myth. The Rook's Bare Face. The rook has a fcatherless space around the base of the beak, disclosing a rather scurfy looking, greyish white skin. It is peculiar to this member of the crow family. Over the nostrils these feathers take oil a quite peculiar character, almost resembling bristles. The contention was that these feathers were worn away by the habit of digging' the beak into the ground for worms and grubs. If this were so the stumps of feathers over this denuded area would be seen. At the annual moult they would be renewed if functioning feather germs still existed there. But no r«newal takes place after they are lost. Young rooks have the face fully .feathered and tho nostrils covered with bristles as with the rest of the crow tribe. But at the autumn moult thev arc shed and not renewed. Pycraft states there is one peculiarity of this denuded face and throat which seems never to have attracted attention. And this is that the bases of the feathers surrounding this bare area always havo an unpleasantly unfinished anpearance, since the grey, uucoloured base of tho vane or web of the feathers is never concealed by smaller, overlapping feathers such as other birds with bare faces invariably display.