NATURE NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15646, 27 June 1914, Page 5 (Supplement)

NATURE NOTES.

Br J. MH7HMOJTD. M.1., r.z.9.

A theory has been generally accepted that young wild ducks, hatched in nests high up in trees, reach the water below by being carried on their parents' backs. Sir Walter Buller seta forth this theory in his work on native birds, but ha merely states that it is believed by Maoris, and lie docs not either confirm it or deny it. According to a statement by Mr. Hans Jensen, of Parkville, Eketahuna, in the Wellington province, the young birds simply fall down from the nests and drop on to the surfaco of the water. Some time ago he, with several mates, was felling bush on the bank of the Ruamahanga River. On one occasion, when they were walking along a track on the bank, on their way to lunch, they were surprised to see several young duika fall out of a nest in a tree twenty-five or thirty feet from the ground, flapping their wings as they fell. An adult bud was in tho water about a chain away, and was calling to tho young ones. On returning after lunch, Mr. Jensen saw tho family party swimming in tho stream. Tho nest belonged to a grey duck, which had used it time after time. Some very interesting information ill regard to Pomaderris tainui, the plant which the Maoris believe sprang up near Kawhia out of timber used in the Tainui canoe, has been supplied by Mr. J. B. Armstrong, of Chriskhurch. Mr. Armstrong states that it was old Rewi who pointed out tho grove of Pomaderris to Sir James Hector many years ago, and it was Rowi who told Sir James that tho trees had originally come in the Tainui. Sir James obtained specimens and ah« some live plants, but when they reached Auckland the latter were stolen from him by an ardent collector of natiio plants. About that time, or soon afterwards, Sir John Hall was in Auckland, and he purchased the plants, broutrht them to Christchurch, and presented them to the Domain Gardens. They were planted in the. native section, and soon grew to a height of 20ft or more. Mr. Armstrong noticed that they were similar to a plant ho had known in Australia as tho dogwood, Pomaderris apctala of Vahl. A careful examination and a comparison with his Australian specimens and with a living plant from Tasmania, convinced Mr. Armstrong that all of them belonged to one species, and that Pomaderris tainui, :ho name given by Sir James Hector, was merely a synonym of Vahl's Pomaderris apetala. Later on the plant was sent to Mr. Armstrong, in order to be named, from Poverty Bay, Port Underwood, Waikouaiti, Nelson, and other places in New Zealand. All of those places had been frequented by early settlers from Australia. Mr. Armstrong believes that the PomadeTris was introduced into New Zealand by those Australians, not more than seventy or eighty years ago, and that old Rewi intentionally deceived Sir James Hector or mistook the Pomaderris for some other plant. "In any caso,' Mr. Armstrong concludes., "the dogwood cannot be considered an indigenous plant of New Zealand." While raking and burning autumn leaves in the first week in June Mr. T. McGill, of Mangamalin, about thirty miles east of Wanganui, made a note of the birds that might be seen from the backyard of a country residence in New Zealand. The first was a harrier hawk, which sailed along gracefully, and disturbed some minahs and starlings. The white wings of the former and the dark wings of the latter intermingled on the hillside opposite, where the birds began to search for grubs and other food. Then three magpies were soon over tho top of the hill in hot pursuit of another harrior, who performed soir.o- remarkable evolutions in order to Bitko good liis escape. If tho observer is near, Mr. McOill adds, the sharp snap of the magpie's mandibles may be heard in one of these encounters, and he expresses an opinion that no harrier can stand up against even one magpie. Later on there was a twittering overhead, and two pied fantails flew into the yard. One settled ou a wire, and opened and shut his fanlil tail, always showing the four dark ..there in tho centre. The next visitor \as a pipit, or native lark, as it is some' ires called. A flock of white-eyes flew into a willow tree. Evidently they had come a long journey. Probably they were migrating to lower altitudes to escape tho rigours o! the winter. At about "i p.m. a kingfisher was seen on a pest near tho sard, Mr. McGill was en his way to get two horses, and ho went closo to the kingfisher, which always kept about a chain between him and his i hserver, .Finally ho saw a worm, swooped down, and flew away with it. When Mr. McGill reached some papa cliffs, he heard a tui singing his evening song. When returning home Mr. McGill saw the same Hi on a kowhai tree close to the road, if you watch tuis carefully," he says, "you will find that they are wonderful contortionists. Their songs vary greatly. I have seldom hcird two witli exactly tho same notes." Further rn, ho heard tho loud calls of wckas, which are very plentiful in his district. A morepork owl was heard near an old barn, and the cries of grey ducks wero heard in the darkness as several of these birds (lew overhead.on their way to their haunts. \ Mr. Elsdon Best has kindly made inquiries in the Bar of Islands district in regard to the eel-liko creature which Mr. E. B. Clark described in this column a few weeks ago, and which he said "aa known as tho pukelcorokoro. Mr. Vast finds that the Maoris of that part of Now Zealand know tho creature but they rail it puhikorokovo. Another correspond'-at, Mr. W Bridge, of Prospect Terr ace, Auckland, has had dome experience of the sane strange and revolting fish. " Five or six years ago," ho writes, " when I was fishing inside Whangurni Heads, almost opposite to Marsden Point, I caught an eel very similar to the one that exriUd Air. Clark's antipathy. It was about threo feet long. The general colour was rusty i'on, which gradually gave way to a shade of green unuerneath. The head had a peculiar shape. It was bent downwards in a curve, something like a bird's head and Ml 1 , out not so sharp, On its head it had two horns. They wero small, like a snail's, but slightly thicker. Its mouth was furnished with teeth about a quarter of an inch long and as thick as a fine needle. They were sharp and strong, we.e bent backwards, and stood about three-sixteenths of an inch apart. There was a double row of teeth around tho mouth and a double row through the centre. Tho skin and flesh were surprisingly tough." It had a disagreeable smell, and its eyes, the most evil Mr. Bridge has ever seen, were tho very embodiment cold cruelty.

Mr. N. V. _ Matthews, of Kaitaia, Auckland province, writes to confirm in opinion expressed by Mr. J. Findlay and Mr. Moorhouse that a ten-pound eel cm swallow a two-pound trout. He supplies an illustration of what an eel, ltylb in weight, " really can swallow.' 1 One evening, a few years apo, he wa.s spearbig eels with a hay-fork in a flooded paddock. He eauq-ht a large <p<vimcn, which weighed lOllb. The expanse of its girth attracted his attention, and when he opened it up to see what was inside it, he was surprised to find ten rats, almost fall-grown, one eel twelve inches long, and another eel eighteen inches long. "I reckon that this takes soma beating," is his comment on the experience.