NATURE NOTES

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 87, 9 October 1937, Page 17

NATURE NOTES

SHINING CUCKOO

ARRIVES

JOURNEY FROM SOLOMON

ISLANDS

(By R. H. D. Stidolph.)

The shining cuckoo, the heralder of spring, has arrived. On October 2 # one was both heard and seen on the banks of the Ruamahanga River, in the Wairarapa. It was first heard call, ing in the willows near the river* bank, and then appeared to view, perching for a few moments high up in a willow, running through its notes and then making its way with "somewhat undulating flight" across the river, where it was again heard calling out. Within a few yards of its route, in a dead gorse bush growing beneath the willows, a grey warbler was brooding its newly-hatched young; but, fortunately for this little bird, the cuckoo has not yet given thoughts to the foisting of its domestic cares to another bird and by the time the cuckoo means business, the young warblers in this nest will be fully fledged and safely launched upon a life of adventure. The next nest of this pair of warblers, however, is almost certain to be visited by a cuckoo, as the latter bird is especially fond of willows, and not many nests of the warbler in these localities escape the cuckoo's attention. Incidentally, it was only in recent years that it was established definitely that the shining cuckoo spends the winter in the Solomon Islands, which means a flight to and from New Zealand of over two thousand miles, practically entirely over the ocean, although the New Hebrides, New Caledonia, and Norfolk - Islands would provide good resting places, if these are needed. The shining cuckoo appeared at Day's Bay at the end of last week. RIFLEMAN BUILDING. A visit to the East Coast of the Wellington district the other day showed that the rifleman was fairly well represented in a remnant of beech forest that formerly clothed much more extensive areas in that part of tha island. One pair that was under observation for some time had a nest in course of construction at the base of a beech tree. Portion of the trunk had rotted away and a cleft of small size gave access to the interior, where a nest could be seen by peering, into the recesses of this retreat. The female bird was actually seen carrying building material but she refused absolutely to go near the nest while she was under observation, and, a gale of wind springing up, building operations were apparently suspended. The late Sir Walter Buller relates that on one . occasion, in the Makuri Gorge, when he was skinning a huia and his companion was plucking a kaka for the pot, a male rifleman appeared on the scene and made off with a feather for its nest. It returned several times; and the site of the nest, in a nearby tree, was found by following the bird. On the other hand, the late Mr. J. C. McLean, who studied the habits of the rifleman in the Gisborne district, recorded that one pair he was watching refused to go near the nest while he was about. The rifleman appears to lose its secretiveness about its nest when the young are being fed, as a pair seen by the writer in the Tararuas made no attempt to conceal the whereabouts of the nest, constantly flying to it with food in full view of the watchers. THE BUSH HAWK. The territory of the riflemah in this part of the East Coast is shared with the tomtit. Tomtits no doubt had nests in occupation, judging by the excitement shown by one or two male birds, which displayed the white/mark over the bill to advantage, a clear indication that the birds were perturbed. An old nest of the tomtit was seen, built in a characteristic situation, in a cavity on a dead trunk. ' The call of the whitehead was also heard in the distance, so that this species, too, still survives in the district. Overhead, the shrill cry of the bush hawk struck terror into the hearts of tha birds. This hawk feeds almost entirely on introduced and native birds, though in a district like this one, where the introduced species far outnumber the native, it is natural to assume that its food consists principally of ailen species. Moreover, such species as the rifleman, tomtit, and whitehead, which rarely leave the shelter of the trees, would escape the attention of this hawk, which plays greater havoc in the ranks of such birds as the pigeon, tui, skylark, pipit, blackbird, and thrush, and others that frequently make flights in the open. In order to secure its victim, it is necessary for the bush hawk to get its quarry in the open, so that it can strike downwards and smash it with a blow of its beak. NESTS OF THE SQNG THRUSH. Many hundreds of nests of the son® thrush have been examined by the writer but it was not until the other day that one was seen with six eggs. The usual clutch is four, though three is not uncommon; and it is seldom that more than four are found in a nest. On two occasions the writer has seen nests with five eggs each. These nests have all been examined in situ. It has been recorded that nests of the thrush have been found containing two eggs of the thrush and two of the blackbird, while nests of the blackbird have been found with a similar complement. The writer, well aware that these occurrences have been recorded in good faith on the reports of others, views these instances with the gravest suspicion. NEST-BUILDING MATERIAL. A bird-lover never knows when ha will see something of interest. As these notes were being written the writer happened to glance through a window in full view of which, in a laurel, is a blackbird's nest of last season. Two silver-eyes, a pair, alighted near the nest, and at once began to tug away at pieces of material; both birds, having secured a small supply, flew away across the street. A _ew minutes later they were back again to gather more material, and no doubt this procedure will continue throughout the afternoon. One cannot help contrasting the methods of this species with that of the grey warbler. The female warbler alone carries out the somewhat big task of building the nest, while its mate is content to cheer it on to renewed vigour by giving snatches of song and quivering its wings in excitement and ecstasy. Not so the silver-eye, however, as the male bird takes his full share of the work entailed in building the nest. The speed with which some nests are constructed is amazing. An English observer reports that a hen song thrush built its nest, including the mud. lining, in twelve hours; and another authority has known an egg to be laid four days after building started.

'."Water" from a tap at the village oE Opovo, near Kovatchitza, Yugoslavia, formerly used for drinking purposes by sheep and cattle, now lights the village at night. Borings for naptha are' now being made in the district.