WAYS OF THE WILD.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 267, 10 November 1934, Page 1 (Supplement)

WAYS OF THE WILD.

(By A. T. PYCROFT.)

THE KEA. IS IT A SHEEFKIIXER ?

Mr. D. Cutlibert, of Symonds Street, Onehunga, writes as follows:—"In view of Mr: Sidney Porter's vindication of the kea (as a sheepkiller) in the 'Avicultural Magazine,' England, it would be of great interest to many of us to read your views of that bird." The evidence which I have read forces mc. to conclude, and I desire to stress this point, that in certain localities keas have been seen attacking sheep and have caused their death. The kea, a parrot, is confined to tlie South Island, and occurs only in the high mountainous parts. It is extending its area of distribution to Nelson and Marlborough and further eastward in Otago. I know the kea. and when residing in Christchurcli I kept a pair for about a year and fed them mainly oil raw mutton and mutton fat. They were very noisy at nights and screeched more on moonlight nights. I have also seen and watched them in tho Southern Alps. I agree witli Mr. Porter that they are most interesting birds, and this has been remarked upon by several New Zealand ornithologists aid naturalists, who liave given us excellent accounts of their habits. I met Mr. Porter when he was in New Zealand for several months, and he told mc before ho had seen keas in a wild etatc that he did not believe they injured sheep. I learn from his article that he only saw keas at Mount Cook, where they are protected. Mr. Porter's article has been reissued in the October issue of the New Zealand Native Bird Protection Society's Bulletin No. 34. This society has done very good work by educating the public to appreciate and protect our unique avian forms, but I think that in this case the evidence against the kea in certain localities as collected by Professor Benham, F.K.S., of Dunedin, and the late Mr. G. E. Marriner, formerly of Cliristchurch and late curator of the Wanganui Museum, should be seriously considered before an article such as that of Mr. Porter, who has 110 knowledge of the subject, is published, with such editorial remarks as "again the users of sheep runs held on peppercorn rentals in alpine countries of the South Island are clamouring for the extinction of the kea, at tho taxpayers' expense. Tliereiore, the main feature of this Bulletin is a timely defence of a much maligned bird by a well-known authority on birds. All the old hearsay nonsense against this bird is being aired again by persons who hope to scare the Government, presumably to reinstate the halfcrown subsidy previously paid by them for keas' heads."

Direct Evidence. Mr. Porter did not visit sheep runs and collect first-hand information, but contents himself with remarks such as this: "I still have to be convinced that this bird kills sheep at all. No one I ever met had ever seen a kea kill a sheep, except one man, who said he had seen two hundred killed in a night." "With the tales of sheep killing it is always the old story of someone who knew someone else whose friend had seen them." Mr. Porter also states that '"Everything is being done to foster the idea about the kea's feeding upon mutton," and that "Most observations of the ordinary person about birds are incorrect. It is quite an easy matter for a person to see keas examining a dead sheep, for they are exceedingly inquisitive birds, and for the rumour to grow and grow until it was seized upon as a commercial proposition." Professor Benham contributed an article to the "Transactions of "■ the New Zealand Institute" in 1906 on "The Flesh-eating Propensity of the Kea," and states: '"L have been asked by incredulous folk, 'Has anyone ever seen a kea at work on the sheej}?' I was at one time unable to answer this question, till I investigated the subject, but thanks to my correspondents I am now in a position to say, most certainly, on plenty of occasions have, the birds been seen on the backs of sheep, and shot while at work jncking away at the wool and flesh. A list of these correspondents, ten in number, is given, also their addressee, and their letters published. Moreover, crops have been examined and found to contain I wool and mutton.' Professor Benham states: "My correspondents are all, I believe, trustworthy witnesses, and I see no reason to doubt the truth and accuracy of their statements." Mr. Marriner devotes one chapter of his book, "The Kea," to descriptions of tile sheep killer at work, and also states that when he was staying at Mount Algidus station, in Canterbury, he saw three sheep which had been attacked by keas, and on another occasion, on the Toe Flat, a splendid Merino ram was found dead, caused by an ugly wound on the rump. Mr. Marriner quotes from 13 correspondents, some who have actually seen the kea at work driving its formidable bill into tlie sheep's back.

All Keas Not Killers. There arc areas where keas have not interfered with sheep, and Mr. Porter states that never in the history of the Hermitage (Mount Cook) has a kea been known to touch a cheep, although there are hundreds round there, and keas and sheep live on quite friendly terms. Professor Benham states: "I am inclined to the opinion that the carnivorous habit is peculiar to individual keas in a flock, and that there are many sheep stations in the area occupied by the kea whose owners have apparently no fault to find with the bird, and even in those districts where they are most troublesome it is probably only certain bh'ds that are the victims of this craving for flesh. Keas are protected in certain areas, and there has been no complaint in the northern sections of the West Coast, such as the Franz Josef Glacier, where the bird is protected." Marriner. summing up his evidence, states: "I think I am justified in s;iyinsr that, as far as human evidence c;in I><" relied on, I have conclusively proved that ihe kea has not onlv taken In meat eating, but • that it does actually attack :i"d kill sheep." The evidence is so overwhelm-SfSmi'ia/p-y '.«».«.* o«t of their ■ own pockets.