BIRDS IN CAPTIVITY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 269, 13 November 1935, Page 27

BIRDS IN CAPTIVITY.

Mr. W. A. Moore's letter does not contain a single convincing argument in favour of caging birds, but is composed of an attempt to belittle my knowledge of the subject, a quibble about my having used initials instead of name (as if that affected the merits or demerits of my contentions) and, thirdly, an elaborate display of his knowledge of bird crossings, colouring, etc. Does the fact that" Mr. Moore possesses a fine aviary full of contented, well-cared for birds justify a pernicious habit that has spread till no bird is safe and 95 per cent of those caged are cruelly restricted and neglected and large numbers scared away? Does he realise that birds, gaudy or plain, are an absolute neccssitv-to man in destroying millions of insects every day that would otherwise make plant life, and consequently all life, impossible ? By the example of these bird clubs thousands of the poorer people, to be in the fashion, catch and confine any wild bird they get their eyes on or can afford to buy. My suggestion to liberate canaries in the Waitakeres, of which so much has been said, was just an idea, but I am satisfied that it is practical and could be made a success if attempted with lialf the zeal employed in building up aviaries. If birds (including canaries) can exist in tiny cages out of doors in all weather, surely they can exist in the bush, where they would be able to move about and find shelter. Two or three weeks' shepherding (or birdflo'eking, shall we say) would be all that was necessary to give them a start in a climate like New Zealand. Birds have been on the wing for thousands of years and would go back to the wild in a short time. The whole miserable, unnatural business should be dropped, and I am pleased to note that Parliament will soon bring in some restrictive laws. None of the savage races indulge in this hobby of imprisoning everything pretty they see—that's left for civilised (?) man. H.T.R.