Page:Reminiscences of Earliest Canterbury 1915.pdf/80

 the fledglings. Other birds were the native robin, native canary, etc. Paroquets darted in wavy green lines amongst the forest trees, and the pigeons soared and sank again into the tops of the matais. In contrast to our imported birds the native birds were remarkably confiding. Tame is not the word, for they were quite untamed, but they were trustful and confiding to a degree that was quite touching. The robin would hop round your feet, or settle within a few inches of your shoulder, and contemplate your features with a calm assurance that touched you, at the same time that it defied you to betray the trust he reposed in you.

The pigeon was of the same character. Several in succession could be shot from the same tree. This bird was much in request for the table of the pioneers, and it was easily procured when wanted. The native pigeon, besides his delicacy as an article of diet, which, after all, was a passive quality, had other habits which were of great benefit to those who studied him. He was, for example, an excellent barometer. At day-break, the pigeons were full of bustle and life, feeding greedily on the berries; but, if a storm were brewing, they would suddenly