NATURE NOTES

Evening Post, Volume CXVII, Issue 47, 24 February 1934, Page 11

NATURE NOTES

VANISHED FORESTS .AND

BIRDS

OBSERVATIONS IN THE NORTH

(By R. H. B. Stidolph, E.A.0.U.)

Charles Danvin, the famous natural ist, who visited the Bay of Islands in December, .1835,. during, his voy/agjß around the world, commented on the scarcity of bird-life in the kauri, forest which he saw in the neighbourhood of Waimate. "In the woods I saw very few birds," he wrote ,in his volumo describing his voyage.. The same comment could apply equally well today. A recent visit to the miserable remnants of kauri forests still intact, revealed-a similar deficiency ,in .bird-life. Many; species common in the southern, portion of the North.lsland do not exist north of Auckland, and. a resident of the Wellington district is disagreeably; surprised at the absence of several bush.' birds which never, fail to enliven the forest in this part of the island. Qa the- other hand, one or two species are found in the North Auckland district which are missing or are decidedly scarce in this district, but as far as tho bush birtls are concerned the paucity of bird-life in the northern .forests is most marked and disappointing. ' There ara* no whiteheads, which invariably attract attention in the Wellington district .and do much to brighten, the bush, with their notes. There are no bellbirds, and one listens in. vain for /{.he morning chorus which, is a feature o£ more southern forests. ;The, diminutive rifleman wren is also missing, nor is the tomtit, a fairly common , bird in'■■• the Wellington district, .to :be seen.'lpr heard. All these species are widespread and,more or less common in the central and southern portions of the island, and their . absence from 'the northern .districts is at puce .noticeable. It appears as if all the ; life has.-been, taken out of these northern, bush lands, the area of which-is, however, exceedingly small. • ..,'-■■■: '■■•.■;, ..•

The kauri forests of the north were' New Zealand's most valuable asset,; and if they had been conserved they; ■would have provided 'untold wealth in. perpetuity. Today they are' a thing of the past. Almost nothing remains'o£"a former forest heritage that today would have been capable of paying New Zealand's war debt twice over? In their place are thousands and thousands of acres of indifferent farm lands and poor country almost worthless for cultivation, lands which would have returned a rich harvest;and would have carried a far greater population if they, had been left in forest and worked systematically. , Today people from/all parts of the world visit the Waipoua kauri forest and marvel at the lack of foresight and policy that has allowed vast areas of country to be denuded of such magnificent : timber trees.: The kauri forest, in its primeval beauty,-is. one of the most wonderful sights inthe world.. The stately columnar ..trunks which rise branchless for fifty or sixjby, feet command admiration and wonder, the tops of the trees towering ; above the other vegetation as if one;'-'forest was superimposed upon another. New; Zealand has allowed the .finest softwood in tho world to •; be i ruthlessly; destroyed, a tragedy that is as grim, and stark as any in this country's short history; Tho result is deplorable in the extreme from many aspects, the' most significant of which is the loss of the greatest natural forest wealth that!" the country possessed. One kauri tree seen; by the writer in Waipoua, with a girth, of 42ft 'sin, was estimated ;to';contain 72,000 superficial feet of timber; It was reckoned to be 1200 years old. ' JiyTne} :bijsh\ ;-'in,liatitiiigS."tlj^I''feiii-' liarits' of the :kauri ;i'f6res%-'?b'r"North-Auckland include the tui, a species which seems to be generally distributed throughout-the North Island. In the, northern ■•" districts, however, .it appears to >be present only in small'numbers^'an: odd bird being noted here and there. ;-It is by no means, however; confined^ to forested areas, but occurs also'where there are only a few clumps of natiye _bush trees. The noble wood pigeon enjoys a peaceful life-in the more extensive bush areas, which every, year are becoming smaller. In spite of the vast amount of deforestation that has taken ;place in. the .North Auckland; district, further areas of land are- still being- clcaTed',; ;and,;.before"; long such, birds as the) pigeon; will probably'only; be found in the larger bush i*jserves. The kaka is still found sparingly, in the north. On .the-:occasion , of; a visit to' the Trounson Kauri Forest two of these birds were seen frequenting; a clump of dead trees, spending most of their time sitting. onj,a.bough preening,their feathi erSi ,;These were the only two, how* ever, seen throughout.the North Auckland district, while a small -relative, the parakeet, was conspicuous/,by its abi seiice, although, it was reported' by a,, roadman to be .present in the Waipoua, forest. The scarcity of certain speciesis to a certain extent counter-balanced by the plentifulness of others, one ofwhich is the pied fantail. This charm-; ing nativo bird is far morel numerous^.' in that part of the North ilsland than, it is in the Wellington Province, and is one of the most conspicuous 'features o£ its bird-life.- It frequents.;-bush and farm lands alike, and appears to be, equally as well at home ■;;no matter; where it is found. ~". . :.

Tho sombre-clad grey warbler is dis* tributed throughout tho North Auck-*, land area, in common with the rest of the- North Island. In fact,'; it is on* of the few native birds that'can find a| living in>" almost all types of country-! j carrying a growth of trees>or shrubs.| On two occasions it was seen feeding] the young of the shining cuckoo. That other species of cuckoo, the-Vlong-tailed,;j was neither seen nor heard, and appar-1 ently only passes through that district! during '.migration. Its absence is ac-: counted for by reason of tlio nonexistence of the whitchead,'the species usually victimised by the long-tailed cuckoo in the- North Island. ,' The little silver-eyo .is a common bird in the northern districts', and tho: niorepork owl is also well distributed.--