STOATS AND WEASELS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 563, 19 July 1909, Page 5

STOATS AND WEASELS.

AND OUR SMAUU-BIRD LIFE. THE CALL FOE INFORMATION.

'. l (By R. 0..8bu0e.) I read in your issue of June 23 an appeal made by" Mr. Stead for information in reference to the alleged dcstructivencss stoats and weasels to, tho bird lifo of this country. , I have sent contributions to your columns in reference to this subject, but, as Mr Stead is evidently desirous of obtaining specific and authentic information for tie Ornithological Society of Australasia (who \wish to secure all possiblo data bearing upon t'he I bhall endeavour to place before him and your readers the results of my own observation and oipenence I am aware that the question of the introduction of'these aunnals to the great island continent has recently received much consideiation and discussion in Australia, and it is dnly natural that a as that to which I 1 have alluded, should endeavour to procure all possible information in lefoience to such an important subject. <• Erroneous Ideas About Stoats, eto.

Very great differences of opinion in reference to the question exists in this country, for reasons to which I shall presently allude. 1 anTmuoh pleased with the method resorted to by Mrf Stead for procuring u information which he desires, but lie s quite in error when he says that "every student of bird life in New Zealand is agreed that the stoat and -weasel had dono great damage to our native avifauna." I have been a close observer of our bird Me for nearly thirty years, and m our hilly,, forest country, have had quite exceptional opportunities for observation. We have had, tor more than twontyt years,-stoats and weasels over a very wide area to my know- ' eldge, and I have never, during all these years, heard of a solitary instance of birds —either wild or tame—being molested by these animals. When pheasants and quail first penetrated to my locality t tbey increased amazingly for a period 'During that period I saw, one morning, eleven cock pheasants close to my whare, and, about the samo time, witnessed a short flight of quail, in which I thought, at tho time, there must have been about 3000* birds These birds are now scarce 'by comparison, and their melancholy decrease, is very generally attributed to their "natural enemies," and

principally to stoats and / weasels But the absurdity of these opinions is disclosed by the fact that their "natural enemies" were as plentiful at the tune whon they were multiplying all over the country as they ore to-day. Tbo increase or decrease of any species is, generally speaking, attributable to the food supply- Many organisms (animal or vegetable), upon introduction to new and favourable conditions, inorease ,at absolutely abnormal rates, but, after a while, nature, in her own fashion, comes'in with her checks and balances, and it is in this direction, and not on the score of "natural - enemies, that' we should seek for a solution of the problem. Tho pukeko and the woodhen (both native ground-birds) 1 havo increased in•»a,most remarkable manner since 1 settled in' this locality, notwithstanding the existence of stoats and weasels, but this

may bo attributable to an increase in their, food supply since the removal of so mUoh of , the bush But the fact remains, that these birds have greatly increased in this district, although there.>exists, comcidently, our duo, share of "natural enemies " With tho ex-i ccption of the robin, which seems to have! disappeared from this district —indeed, ho; had gone before the advent of stoats and; weaslU—all the other native birds to be! Been when I_ took up my residence here near Hunterville) continue to exist, although, ul consequence of the gusat destruction of foreste, their numbers must be greatly diminished. * The bell bird had gone before an aso was known in tho great expanse

of forest which covered tho country from the open coast bolt to the base of the Ruahine Range.

The Raal Blrd-Slayew, , , -It is pUro'assumption/and an assumption , which I believe rests upon a fallacious basis, "that the doorcase of the smaller birds, euch as tho wrens, rails, forn' birds, and many i others,' may be'attubiited to tho introduction of the vprmin." Before leaving the country, Sir W. Buller had arrived at the conclusion, long sinco held b) all close students of tho problem m this district, that tho rat is the GjfEAT enemy of our bird life. Hβ climbs the trees and devours eggs and young birds in the nost, and he is so destiuctive to joung ducks that some of the farmers' wives have ceased attempting to raise them at all A friend of mine has, at no great distanco>from his house, a giant rata tree in winch there is quite a colony of weasels, and he has never known of his poultry being molested by either stoats or weasels This being so, it is quite a logical inference that fhej must be living' I upon rals—the great enemies of oui bird life. A farmer, who is settled not far from tho Turakina River in my district recently experienced the unpleasantness of an invasion "of rats, but'!was surprised to find that they all suddenly decamped Ho then discovered that then iery hurried departure was attributable to a weasel that had taken up its quarters under tho house, and in reply to a question he said that none of his poultiy had been molested A jounc; Iran on an adjoining farm told me that when clearing scrub on tho hills he found a weasel's nest with five dead rats in it. The Useful Weasel and his Stupid Cousin. During the time that l'liad the distinction of being a member of the House 1 had the pleasure of intercourse with Mr Saunders, : who represented a southern constituencj. He was at once ono of the shrendest and most i practical men with whom I ever came into contact, and I heard lnm ono night make a I most admirable little speech with reference .to i stoats and weasels Some of his fnends at | Homo, he told us, kept a fowl farm close to a wood. For some reason the game-keepers occasionally kept the weasels down, hut at other times allowed them to increase. When the weasels were kept down tho rats increased, and during these periods much loss was sus- ' tamed amongst the fowls, but when the | weasels were allowed to lecomo nuirorous the | poultrj received no molestation whatever >, Ferrets (frequently in this countrj con- , founded with weasels) must bo placed in : quite a different catet*or\, as thej aro most ( senseless animals, and will upon occasions attack and hold on to anj thing that moves aud has life. And at Home they are regarded as most destructive to poultry whenever they obtain access to fowl roosts. i

Last Word on-tho Real Assa^ri;i : •'-Its miglife hierejnterpolateVtliat. -Sir .W.al'f&.r / Buiier"was 'in error when;he- thought; that: the; little ; become• extinct';--'for..' ,41ey/are'still:fairly.-;miracrpus inthe vicinity, of Ruapehu;' I only once. saw., a. flock of these, little birds, ;pnd their disappearance 'from this district constitutes to' mo an insoluble pro!}- ■ lem. 'Mr.; Grace, of.yTaupo',- who was brought, up'inHhe:forest, and who -possesses an: inti- : mate acquaintance with ;Oiir bird life, told,mo that .it-was 'in the whitehead's liest-.that.-thej beautiful little,.pipi-.wliarauroa generally laid its ; egg:' Ho further told me that ho had seen : •fats m 'the.-trees' '• 'robbing-.the -nests.vboth. of '■ eggs and i young birds; We have never heard: 'in this-'idistrictvofiany' attacks -made --by: -weasels upon lambs, :but it'.would not surprise ■ me to'.hear-of:a:forrot doing so>f ■• '-.. ■-•,.-■''.;. j ..'To :.erystalHso the/ : iesults. of.'our pbserva-; tion and-experience in this .district,-.! -and -fel- ; •low.i'naturalists'believe that none of .'our birds, (either.' native-or'imported). have ■ stiff wed'at-: "tacks'-from/stoats and weasels,"andil believe Jthat we mayreasohably/assume'that in'keep-' ing'dpwn fats-w'e must to'-a'great extent pre-' TentVthe''de'st^lction , of four bird :life;' I-hare, not'-as'-yet had personal experience.of.rabbits, ■ -but frbrii all,'tha.t,l;hiye"seen, heard,' or"read; of 'them;' I, have ■arrived '/at rth'e - .conclusion", that vivhen/ : they" -are'- nurcerbiis -stoats''and: weasels'"cah'-hardly-bo- said. to; have,:an appre-■oiablei-cffectyiii'-'keeping them in.subjection... In : another"articlevl your permission'i fpresent-the':.quost-icii?-from-., a.; different. point-;of'/view./;'/;: : -:;- r '''V'v :■'::'. V^' ; 'v'■:,'•-> '