NATIVE BIRDS ” ESSAY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18550, 25 August 1928, Page 18 (Supplement)

NATIVE BIRDS ” ESSAY.

The first competition under the auspices of the New Zealand Native Bird Protection Society for a prize of £5 was won by Miss Joan Berry, of Ngapotiki. The essays on any chosen native bird : were numerous, emanating from all parts of the Dominion, and even as < far away as Chatham Islands. Mrs Moncrieff, of Nelson, who judged the : essays, writes: “It was most ; delightful reading these essays, ; and I only wish I could give , many more prizes. I am sure it should put a grown-up person to shame to 1 read the remarks on the lack of bird protection, and it was delightful to ; read such remarks as: ‘Fancy a world . without birds, what a cheerless place it would be! How lovely it is in the ; country, beside a running stream, with < the blue sky above and the trees giving their shade, to lie and listen to the sweet songs of the birds on every side. It is the sweetest music in the world/ ” REDBILLS. (Winning Essay by Miss Joan Berry.) Our native redbifls are fairly tame birds. They are about the size of a pigeon, but are shorter and fatter in stature. Their plumage is black, bbt white feathers are visible under the wings when the birds are in flight. They have short tails, red eyes, long red legs, and very long red bills. Their legs are not quite such a bright colour as their bills. They haunt lonely sea-coasts, but are unable to swim, as they have not webbed feet. Their call resembles that of a paradise duck about to rise from the ground, with the addition of one shrill note on the end. When calling, redbills usually stand on one leg, bob their heads up and down, opening their bills wide at every note. They are poor fliers, rarely rising mere than a few feet from the ground, and never flying very far at a time. Their usual way of progress is a little quick run j with which they advance very swiftly, j When running away from anything, redbills hold their heads down. Their chief food is small insects, found in seaweed, although I have often watched them standing on a rock in about six inches of water and securing small fish from the incoming tide. They often sleep, standing on one leg, during the day. I think the redbills here sleep on some rocks on the end of a point at night. They usually go about in pairs.

They nest early in December, generally selecting a bleak spot near the sea. I once watched a female redbill making a nest in the pebbles. She turned round in a circle, beating the sand into place with her wings until a shallow hole was formed. Redbills lay from two to three greenish brown eggs, blotched with black and brown. They are about the size of hens’ eggs, but are more the shape of turkeys’. The eggs take three weeks to hatch, and during that time the female leaves the nest only long enough to get food. While the female is setting, the male is often seen standing on a rock or piece of high ground near the nest keeping watch. If danger approaches, he gives a sharp call, at which the female leaves the nest and either hides or flies away The chicks are covered with black down, and have large red bills when hatched. They are fed on insects found on the sand or in seaweed, and soon become very active, although it is some time before they fly. The parent birds teach the chicks to find their own food whim they are quite young, and they are often seen searching in sea-

weed together. The redbills are cleveat hiding their chicks and misleading an enemy if one goes near As soon as they lose their down the chicks get the plumage of an adult redbill, instead of having a less conspicuous plumage the first year, as the y’-ourtg ol some species of birds have.