Page:The Kea, a New Zealand problem (1909).pdf/57

Rh fortunate enough to find a Kea’s nest, which he describes as follows: “A bird came over and began calling, but would not come near the traps, staying down by the male bird we had caught the night before. I went back and saw her, with tail spread and wings drooping, run to the edge of a bluff and fly off into the ravine without a sound. I guessed immediately that she had a nest, and as soon as there was enough light we started looking for it. When we were just giving up hope of finding it, and were going to turn the male bird loose and follow him, we heard the female call away down in the bottom of a big rock slip, and I caught a glimpse of her as she moved. Hurrying to the spot, we found a lot of loose feathers and droppings, which indicated the presence of a nest. We soon located it, in a long hole, the entrance of which was formed by two enormous boulders, which leaned against one another, forming a triangular space, partly blocked by a third stone. This latter we removed by using a thick vine as a rope, and after much scratching and scraping I reached in, and striking a match, saw the bird on her nest. More scraping and digging among the small stones and earth, and again I reached in, but quickly withdrew my hand, minus a small piece of the middle finger. I then wrapped a handkerchief round my hand, and very soon had the bird out. I handed her to Mr Murchison to hold, and she immediately took a piece out of his coat and clawed him pretty thoroughly, but my attention was on the nest, and, to my joy, I found four pure white eggs. They were laid on the ground among a few chips of rotton wood and bark, about five feet from the entrance of the hole.

“More than satisfied with our night’s work, we returned to the Lake, and that afternoon H. and myself, with many thanks for the hospitality and assistance we had received, left for the Point, en route for home.”

As the Kea is really king of the Alps, and drives all the other birds away from its domain, it is difficult to explain the reason why it chooses such a stronghold for its nest. It is only of late years that the weasels and stoats, introduced from Europe, have made their way up to the snow line, and