IN TOUCH WITH NATURE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2914, 19 January 1910, Page 13

IN TOUCH WITH NATURE.

{By James Drtjhmond, F.L.S., F.Z.S.)

NOTES ON NATURAL HISTORY IN NEW ZEALAND.

The unreliable nature of evidence often given, and sometimes accepted, on scientific subjects is shown by an incident related by Lieutenant Cox, of the Chatham Islands. Some of the Morions told him that the moa once lived on the mainland of the group. They said that they called it pona, and, to prove that they were correct, they offered to show some bones of the bird, which were in the big lagoon. One day, when Lieutenant Cox and his partner were returning home from a visit at Christmas time, they induced the natives to take them to the lagoon and show them where the bones had been deposited. There were some large bones under the water, but when they were fished up it was found that they belonged to a black-fish whale and to a bullock. “The fish of Central Australia,” writes Mr Alexander Aitken, of Waihi, who was a member of the Burke and Wills relief -expedition, ‘‘must possess some unknown power of continuing their species. One of the most extraordinary features of animal life there is the fact that mussels appear in the creeks after rains or Hoods, although in the creeks, and country for more than 100 miles around there had been no visible water for years.' In one of those great droughts nearly all vegetation disappears, and on some of the earthy plains vegetation completely disappears, leaving nothing but dried sticks behind. The ground is cracked and fissured by the heat to a depth of 10ft or more. I had on one occasion an opportunity of seeing one of these desolate -earthy plains flooded. We had crossed it some months previously without seeing vegetation or a sign'of animal life. After the .flood had somewhat subsided we could hardly see one another on horseback for rank vegetation and the place was alive with pelicans, ducks, and other wild fowl. It was a desolate wilderness, converted by the water into a Garden of Eden.” In regard to the destruction of weasels by wekas in the West Coast Sounds district, which was described in a paragraph in this column a few weeks ago, the Hon. T. Mackenzie, Minister of Agriculture, explains that he ha-s not been present at any of these interesting encounters, but \ they,have been described to him. It was Mr Murrell, jun., who first told him of the weka’s success in this direction, and Mr Murrell’s statements have been con firmed by Mr Harry Birley and several other witnesses. >“ My knowledge of the matter,” Mr Mackenzie writes, “ arose | in this way: On my last trip overland i from the West Coast to Te Amin, I | noticed with great satisfaction the increase in the numbers of our native birds, j ■especially the wekas, and’ I endeavoured j to learn the cause. ■ I had a conversation with Guide Murrell, a very intelligent' j young fellow, who said that he was sure | that the weka was discovering how to I hold its own. He witnessed a most in- | teresting fight between a weasel and a ; weka. It took place on the path. The I weka circled round the weasel, watching ; -a chance to spring in and strike it, which j it did, always on the head, finally stretch- i iug out the weasel. The weka then | danced a war dance with great glee, evi- j -dently being much delighted with itself. ; The last description of a fight that I got j was from Mr Birley, one of the best- i known mountaineers and bush pioneers. | On this occasion two wekas tackled a j weasel. They watched their opportuni- | ties, and killed their foe. To me it is a [ source of intense gratification to realise : that the slaughter by the weasels and j kindred creatures amongst our bird wor«i j is meeting with a check. It looked at j ■one time as if every bird would disappear j before these vermin, but I feel sure that j the balance will be restored. I saw j more tracks of kakapo on my last trip i than formerly. You will understand to ■ what extent the slaughter had been car- j lied on when I tell you that in the whole j of the forest that occupies the country j between the head of Te Anau and the | head of Lake Wakatipu, 50 mile® of country, with the exception of two robins and about a dozen Paradise ducks, 1 saw no other bird life. It may be of interest j to you to know that we have recently ' declared the whole of our Fiordland .National Park a sanctuary.” “I am so delighted with your clien--lele of zoological correspondents and their •excellent and accurate observations,” | ■writes Mr W. W. Smith from New Plymouth, “ that I hesitate in using a line rf your weekly budget. I would, however, mention one act of the kingfisher which I noted lately. When I was conversing with Mrs M. I. Jones, wife of the local taxidermist, at the door of her residence lately, a kingfisher darted down | n a sparrow which was. feeding at the garden gate, seized it, and bore it away into the park. Luring many years of ■observation of our native birds, this is the first instance I have known of a ‘ kotare ’ killing a bird. Mrs Jones, who is a keen ■observer and a lover of Nature, also witnessed the kingfisher’s act.” Mr R. H. Matthews, of Kaitaia. writes •on December 3: “I have just received reliable information that a party of four recently went shark-fishing in Rangaunn Harbour. They returned after about two hours' fishing, with .50 sharks. When j the sharks were landed an old friend, who knew I was interested in the number and condition of the ova, cut open two of them, and found that each had 18 ova on each side of the belly—a total of 36 in •each fish. There was not the slightest sign of an embryo amongst them. This proves my statement that the ova are perfect during the month pi December.

Of course, it -would have been move satisfactory if my friend had waited till all the sharks were opened, to see if the number of ova was constant. How are I sharks fertilised? Ho sharks with fidly--1 developed young keep out in blue water j and never, or rarely, enter a harbour? ! Perhaps some of your correspondents can throw light on vho subject, and supply information in regard to sharks’ habits generally.” The statement that tins in one districthave a different song from tuis in another district is supported by Mr F. Williamson, of Herekino. He says that I these birds indcecb often change their i tunes. Once, when he was camping in | the Bay of Plenty district, he noted that | the tuis ban a very poor tune, consisting I of three notes and finishing with a guttural sound best described as “ ack.” Described in notes of the staff it- would be “ BG-E-ack,” the dashes representing' pauses or rests. When this had been repeated by about a dozen throats all round the clearing day after day for a week or two he became heartily tired of it. One morning an -enterprising tui composed a new tune, which went “G-ABFB.” This was not very brilliant, but was an improvement. When it had fried the tune a few times the others picked it up, and it was soon going merrily. Ho pointed out to the man with.! whom ho was working that the tuis had a new tune. Re listened and said; “So they June,” and, being a good whistler, he began whistling the old lay. When he had repeated it for a few minutes one lui answered and then an other, until they were all back on the old theme. At- another camp a few miles away the tuis in the early morning sang a tune closely resembling a few bars out of “Hiawatha.” A correspondent at Waipiro Bay, on the east coast of the North Island, states that last autumn he saw an adult shining cuckoo making unmistakable attempts to entice a young one away from its foster parents. It was late in the season—in fact, they were the last two that he saw in 1908, —and tho older bird may have thought that the youngster had no time to waste if he was coming along. He states that in that part of New Zealand the long tailed cuckoo seems to live almost entirely on locusts or cicadas. In the summer it- is always found in the high ranges where those insects abound. It seems to prefer the larger species. As far as this correspondent’s observations go tire long-tailed cuckoos always gather in flocks of two or three dozen justbefore they take their departure. They are specially noisy .during tire two or three days when they are gathering together. He has always heard the first arrivals and the last departures at night. | In regard to the native pigeon, ho says i that he has seen, on the average, a nest i a summer during the past 15 or 20 years, and be has never found one. nest containing more than one egg or one young. He points out that his experience in this respect is different from that of another correspondent, who says that the native pigeon lays two eggs. Lieutenant Cox. of the Chathams, de- ; scribes a case iu which a female bird took j on male plumage. A wild duck which ; lived at Te Whakuru changed its plumage | every six months. At one time it- would i have the plumaue arid voice of the female, ; and for the next six months it would ■ have the plumage and voice of a male. ‘ “ We have several English birds here,” i Lieutenant Cox adds. “ There are skylarks, which were imported some years ago by Mr T. Ritchie, ml which are plentiful in all parts of the island. Sparrows are present in their millions. They found their own way over here, and we all wish that they had not done so, as they dc a great deal of damage to our | oats when newly sown, when cut and 1 stooked ready for carting, and even when stacked. Goldfinches also came uninvited. Starlings, which are represented by thousands, bred from three birds imported by Mr L. W. Hood when he was trading to this island. Blackbirds and thrushes, which are very numerous, found their way here. We also ha.ve the green linnet and the yellow-hammer.”