Page:The Kea, a New Zealand problem (1909).pdf/54

50 the snow-clad Rolleston Range on the other, until we suddenly came upon some proof of the Keas’ presence. On the ground in front of us a fine merino ram lay dead, with a ghastly hole torn in its back, and its neck stretched out as if it had died in agony.

Having photographed it, we pushed on to where the Chimera Creek joins the Mathias River; and here, tethering our horses to the bushes, we commenced to climb the steep, slippery side of Jack’s Hill.

The Chimera Creek flows almost through the centre of the hill, and on its way has cut a deep narrow gorge, which is about two hundred yards wide where the stream issues on to the river flat. This gorge runs back for some miles towards the centre of the range. On each side high and prependicular cliffs shut out the sunlight, and, rising as they do from two hundred to a thousand feet in height, they form a long, deep, narrow gorge.

At last we came to the nest, which, fortunately for us, was not in an altogether inaccessible position, but situated in a long narrow tunnel, whose opening was in a small ravine running at right angles to the top of the gorge and opening over it.

It was situated on the top of the western cliff, but, owing to the walls of rock rising sheer out of the bed of the creek, we could not get a foothold anywhere; in order to reach it, we had to climb along the top of the cliff. Owing to the thick drizzle that had now set in, and the fact that the ground sloped to the edge of the gorge, we had to take great care that we did not slip over into the dark ravine below.

In August, 1906, while trying to destroy some Keas that had been killing sheep for some time, Mr. Urquhart discovered the nest and determined not only to rob it, but at the same time to kill the old birds.

So one night, with several of his men, armed with spades and crow-bars, he climbed along the edge of the cliff; but owing to the darkness they were unable at first to locate the nest. As a last resource one of the men imitated the well-known