Along the Track

Forest and Bird, Issue 96, 1 May 1950, Page 8

Along the Track

"RANKS PENINSULA.—It may interest you -**-* to hear that we saw a male North Island or White-breasted Tomtit in a manuka bush here today. We are grateful for your book, “Forest-Inhabiting Birds” for enabling us to identify it.

MIRAMAR.On 31st December we were favoured with a visit from a tui, attracted no doubt by the profuse display of pohutukawa blossom that was in full bloom at the time. It would settle on a tree for a while and get busy drinking the nectar from the flowers, then take a short kind of survey flight around the district, always at a considerable height, but always return to our plantation of pohutukawas.

We have concentrated on planting honeybearing native trees for some years now, and are very pleased to report visits from many native birds that were not seen previously.

This summer a pair of silver-eyes built a nest and reared four young quite close to the house; they used to take a great delight in washing under the fine spray from the hose.

It appears to me that many people do not grow suitable trees for the birds because they have not sufficient space, but from my observations if everybody grew only one native tree the birds would make use of it.

APPLEBY—GUARDIAN OF THE PEAR TREE.— friend of mine has on his farm a very large old pear tree which bears abundantly. Just before each fruiting season a tui makes his home in the tree and takes his toll of the ripening pears, but woe betide any other bird which approaches the tree to do likewise! The farmer is quite content and regards the pears the tui damages as his wages for saving the rest.

TASMAN BAY.Near where we were camping this summer there are numbers of blue heron. At one time I counted nine of them in the air indulging in aerobatics and playing together. Such a large number in one flock must, I think, be unusual, and is most pleasing. ;;

NELSON.— a recent visit to a tidal estuary on the western side of Tasman Bay, I derived considerable interest from watching a colony of shags. There were about 60 birds in the colonymostly black, but a number had white throats and one or two were silver grey

or spotted. One morning they came inshore with only their heads above water, and being in more or less single file might have given rise to a sea-serpent story. A few mornings later they came inshore and assembled on a sandbank, while seagulls flew overhead in apparent hostility. The small red-billed gull appeared to be at home among the shags, but the larger gulls did not associate. Later, when the shags had evidently fed well on small fish, the gulls flew overhead and swooped down upon the shags possibly intent on making them disgorge the meal. The shags took refuge under water and only a few of the heads appeared at one moment. The gulls kept up the noisy attack for about half an hour, nor was this an isolated instance of their hostility. Occasionally a shag would take refuge in flight, and in each case the shag was slightly faster than its attackers. On several occasions a solitary shag was timed for 20 seconds submerged, and in one instance the time was 25 seconds.

MARLBOROUGH.In the course of several visits to Pelorus Reserve I have had ample opportunity of studying the birds, particularly the tui and the bellbird, which appear to be adapting themselves to changed conditions. Unfortunately, the wood-hen is rarely if ever seen, and one cannot ignore the possibility that dogs and cats are responsible—a matter that should be watched by those in authority. Pigeons used to be plentiful in the Reserve and adjacent valleys, but are now rarely seen. One is forced to the conclusion that these magnificent birds have been destroyed by irresponsible sportsmen who prefer easy targets to an energetic chase after a wild pig. Sparrows and chaffinches are becoming very tame owing to feeding by visitors. These birds have adopted the system of feeding on the nectar exuded by the round pink grub embedded in the bark of the beech trees. The nectar is found at the tips of the hair-like feelers which indicate the presence of the grub. The tuis or bellbirds strongly resent this invasion of their food supplies, and I witnessed many attacks where sparrows were driven far away from the tree-trunks and trees which supplied the food, often being compelled to seek refuge on the ground, where the native birds refrained from attacking. In feeding, the sparrows have adopted the same method as the native birds—i.e., by climbing up the tree trunks and feeding as they go. The sparrow

appears to be more able to dodge the tui on an upward flight, but has a genuine respect for both tui and bellbird when either makes a swift downward flight. For half an hour at a time I watched the battle going on.

On several occasions I watched a tui at his music lessons and he followed three distinct themes. The first was a harsh croaking noise. Then followed much extending of throat and snapping of beak before three trumpet notes were emitted, and these sounded very much like the notes of a child’s toy trumpet. Then was heard the exquisite melody for which the bird is famous, and in it was a challenge against man’s destruction of his forest home and feathered companions.

FRANZ JOSEF. roadman drew our attention to something unusual, and on alighting from the car I saw it was a pure albino pigeon. I approached to about 20 feet and was able to see its pink eyesnot a blemish on the whole pure white bird.

WAIMAUKU. —The Government Reserve adjoins our land. There are many birds of all kinds—pheasants, quail, red-fronted parrakeets, tuis, pigeons, mallard and grey duck, grey warblers, silvereyes, fantails, screech owls, moreporks, hawks, kingfishers and numerous other

small birds. The bush comprises kauri, puriri, nikau palms, pohutukawa, rimu, totara, honeysuckle and kowhai.

WELLINGTON. 3 p.m. on the 25th September, 1949, I heard that harbinger of Spring, the first song of the Shining Cuckoo, in the Wellington Botanical Gardens. By the song I judged that there were at least three of these birds in the gardens. It was a fine afternoon, but it may have been the odd Grey Warbler singing that was giving them such joyous cause for the fine choir they had.

At this early season, it will be noted, the notes of the Shining Cuckoo’s song sound like “irish, irish, irish”repeated with a rising inflection and ending on the last note with “stew”; but as the season advances they have less and less “irish” and more and more “stew” in their song, until just before they leave in January their song is just miseries of stews.

STRATFORD.In my garden is a Plagianthus which is about 20 feet high and is now changing its foliage: it shows the adult foliage at top and the juvenile interlaced foliage underneath. I preferred not to cut it. One or two others are 18ft. high or more, and a few more from 16ft. down to Bft. high; anything lower are of more recent plantings.