CUCKOOS AND OTHERS

Evening Star, Issue 20980, 19 December 1931, Page 2

CUCKOOS AND OTHERS

[Written by L. W. M‘C., for the ‘ Evining Star.’]

Discussing the shining cuckoo on October 10, 1 mentioned the lack of information as to how the female lays her egg in the nest of the grey warbler, the puzzle being complicated by the fact that tho entrance, besides being exceedingly small is situated in the side. In reply to this has come a most interesting letter from Mr J. Grant, of Wanganui, who, originally an Otago teacher, was for many years in charge of the teaching of nature study and agriculture under the Wanganui Education Board. Ho has sent me a leaflet published by the board in 1918 in which are several natural history notes sent in by pupils and others. The most important letter was from a farmer, and I quote it in full. “ While cutting gorse on the 29th November, 1917, I noticed two warblers flying excitedly round their nest, which was a short distance ahead of me. Going closer, I noticed a cuckoo's head just showing out of the nest; tho bird was inside. The cuckoo, on being scared, flew away, and it was then noticed that the usual opening in tho nest had been torn to a much greater size. About twenty minutes afterwards the warblers started _to gather fresh material to repair their damaged homo. They started at the top of tho nest and worked down, but, when they came to the damaged part, one bird went inside, while the other remained outside. In their way they, completed the ‘ darn.’ When the finished work was examined, no trace of the damage could be noticed; nor, in fact, could any difference from the ordinary warbler’s nest bo observed.” Mr Grant adds that tho report was quite disinterested, the farmer not having been previously concerned about any of tho academic points of bird parisitism. Another way of putting tho egg in the nest of tho warbler has been observed by Mr 11. A. Falla, of Auckland, our leading ornithologist. In this case the cuckoo clung to the outside of the nest with the vent the entrance, the egg being laid while in this position. Tho common idea that the English cuckoo, at least, laid the egg on tho ground and placed it in _ the nest by means of her bill was definitely disproved by Chance, who took motion pictures to back up his evidence.' The egg was laid in the nest in the ordinary way, and the cuckoo flew off ; taking with her one of the eggs previously laid by the host bird. I have been asked: “ What would happen if cuckoos mated and then found no suitable nest in which to lay their egg or eggs?” In other parts of tho world it has been recorded that cuckoos (usually of parasitical habits) built nests and reared families.. Why should they not do this in New Zealand ? In his paper on tho shining cuckoo in the 1 Transactions of the New Zealand Institute,’ the late Dr Fulton quoted this letter from a thoroughly reliable observer in Nelson in 1908. “ I have had exceptional opportunities of becoming acquainted with the .habits of our native birds, extending over a period of nearly fifty years. Last summer I was prospecting on the Waitui River a week or two before Christmas, and I noticed a pair of bronze cuckoos close to the camp. I watched them carefully, and they seemed to spend all their time catching flies over a still pool in the river and flying into the finish in one direction. My mate and I spent a considerable time day after day trying to find the nest, but could not do so. At last, one morning about daylight, wo saw seven of them round the same pool; five were obviously very young, as they could fly only a short distance at a time. They would sit on a branch side by side, not changing their position for a long time, the old birds continually feeding them, but never the same one twice in succession. This went on for two or three weeks, every day the youngsters becoming more like the old birds, and taking longer flights until they disappeared. Some days after, I accidentally found what I feel certain was the nest. It was in a dry cabbage tree, about Oft from the ground. In and about the nest wo found feathers that I am sure once belonged to the old birds.” On occasion I have heard doubts expressed as to the accuracy of these observations, but a letter from Mr D. H. Graham,- F.Z.S., of Portobello, than whom there could be no more reliable observer, would appear to confirm the statement /of Dr Fulton’s correspondent. “ One. day in November, 1922,” says Mr Graham, “when in the bush near Opotiki, Bay of Plenty, I was startled to hear a number of incessant cries much as though a number of birds were being hurt. Leaving my work I hurried towards the noise. Standing still for a while I saw an adult shining cuckoo darting about. After much searching I was amazed to see a number of young cuckoos, five in all, sitting on a branch of a senecio, with wings outstretched. They cried out as though in pain. I was more surprised still to observe the adult fly with something in her beak and feed one of the young birds. Bending down, I 'approached as quietly as possible to obtain a close view. Tho noise of the young birds was of a heartrending nature, an incessant crying, always loud, but occasionally much louder* and repeated more rapidly. _ I was now able to see the feeding quite. distinctly and to recognise the food as the black hairy caterpillar, the larva of the black and white moth. As far as I could see each received a caterpillar in turn. I must have stood in this position for half an hour, and the adult never stopped feeding tho young. One may wonder how tho five young cuckoos came to be together. The only reason I can suggest is that grey warblers were plentiful in that part of the bush, that the live cuckoos had hatched about the same time, and had been collected and fed by the real parent.” While Mr Graham’s suggestion is a possibility, I am more inclined to the idea that here was a case where a pair of birds had reverted to nest-building and the rearing of their own family, and that only the lack of observers has prevented other similar records being made. Cuckoos have been quite common, m tho city this spring and early summer. Judging by the number of people who report .having seen the bird, it is evident that the cuckoo is becoming much better known. The most interesting report comes from Mr Alex. Thomson, of Wairongoa, who saw ten or a dozen cuckoos all together. I saw tho lust young bird in the Gardens on December 3. His attempts at making the familiar call were simply ludicrous. This season 1. had three pairs of warblers under observation in the hope of discovering more about the cuckoo and its habits. Of the two nests found one was destroyed by the big gale just when ready for eggs, the other was m too remote a position for close observation. The third nest completely eluded me. I have previously recorded in these columns how a pair of _ warblers reared a cuckoo in a neighbour’s garden. What I believe to be the same pair nested close at hand again this year. I saw carrying nesting

material, and later on small caterpillars and other insects, but was unable to discover their home. I now know that their domestic labours were successful, for only this evening they brought three young fresh from the nest into my garden. Perching them on a shrub only 6ft away from me, they crammed them with caterpillars, aphis, and olearia galhmidge until the young ones ceased twittering and fell asleep cuddled closely together. Two pairs of waxoyes were also kept under observation in the Belt. Both successfully reared a family. In one case tho young were fed largely on the olearia gall-midgo, which was hatching out in great numbers just a few feet away. Jn order to circumvent the bees, which were robbing tho sugar and water from his bird-feeder, Mr G. C. Thomson gave his waxoyes drv sugar instead. One enterprising pair, regular visitors to the feeder, saved 1 themselves much trouble in hunting insects by bringing their young to tho feeder and giving them dry sugar, 100. , .