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Population structure, morphometrics, moult, migration, and wintering of the wrybill (Anarhynchus frontalis)

Notornis, 44 (1), 1-14

S. Davies (1997)

Article Type: Paper

Between 1987 and 1996, 2,383 wrybills (Anarhynchus frontalis) were banded on their wintering grounds at two locations near Auckland; 690 of these were recaptured on 830 occasions. Birds started to arrive at their wintering grounds in December; and stayed at the more northern location until April, when they moved to wintering sites further south. First year birds comprised <15% of the population, and about 30% of birds were at least 5 years old The maximum longevity in the wild was 16 years. Adults had significantly longer wings than younger birds, hut there was no such difference in bill or tarsus length. Body mass generally increased during winter, and adults often were heavier than young birds. Wrybills moulted between late December and early May. A country-wide population census found 5,111 birds in May 1994. There is no reliable indication that the population ever exceeded this level.

The influence of hoki fishing vessels on Westland petrel (Procellaria westlandica) distribution at sea

Notornis, 44 (3), 159-164

A.N.D. Freeman (1997)

Article Type: Paper

The Westland petrel (Procellaria westlandica) population is thought to have increased significantly in recent decades, perhaps as a result of increased food in the form of waste from fishing vessels. A survey of Westland petrels off the West Coast of the South Island, New Zealand, showed that fishing vessels in the West Coast South Island hoki (Macruronus novaezelandiae) fishery influence the distribution of Westland Petrels, but only a small proportion of the Westland petrel population appears to utilise this fishery waste at any one time. Westland petrels appear to select foraging areas primarily on natural features, such as water depth, and only if fishing vessels are in the same area are Westland petrels attracted to them.

A survey of historical laughing owl (Sceloglaux albifacies) specimens in museum collections

Notornis, 44 (4), 241-252

T.H. Worthy (1997)

Article Type: Paper

A list of all historical specimens of the New Zealand laughing owl (Sceloglaux albifacies Gray, 1844) known from museums around the world is presented. There are 52 feathered specimens (24 mounts, 28 study skins), 2 alcohol specimens, 3 part skeletons, and 17 eggs. Of the recorded specimens, only two specimens are identified that could be the type of S. rufifacies Buller, 1904, but whether it is one of these is unknown. Two unlocalised specimens in the Cambridge University Museum are tentatively identified as coming from Buller’s second bird collection.

Sudden death of weka (Gallirallus australis) on Kawau Island, New Zealand

Notornis, 44 (3), 165-170

A.J. Beauchamp (1997)

Article Type: Paper

Eighteen sub-adult and five adult North Island weka (Gallirallus australis greyi) were found dead on Kawau Island in the Hauraki Gulf, between 7 March and 20 April 1996. Weka initially collapsed losing leg control, and died within two days. All dead birds had ample fat reserves. No common cause of death was found in seven autopsies. No long term impact on the population is predicted.

The extraordinary bill dimorphism of the huia (Heteraclocha acutirostris): sexual selection or intersexual competition?

Notornis, 43 (1), 19-34

R.J. Moorhouse (1996)

Article Type: Paper

Morphological comparison of the extinct huia (Heteralocha acutirostris) with its closest known relatives suggests that the pronounced sexual bill dimorphism of the former evolved through selection on female, rather than male bill form. Because sexual selection acts predominantly on males, it cannot readily explain such dimorphism in a non-polyandrous species. Greater female divergence in foraging-related anatomy in a species in which males are the larger (and therefore presumably socially dominant) sex is, however, consistent with the hypothesis that sexual dimorphism can be an adaptation to reduce intersexual competition for food. Determining which sex changed most is a more rigorous means of establishing the evolutionary significance of sexually dimorphic traits than interpretation of current function.

Geographical variation in the bone length of laughing owls (Sceloglaux albifacies)

Notornis, 43 (2), 85-90

B.J. Gill (1996)

Article Type: Paper

Measurements of the lengths of fossil bones show that North Island laughing owls were appreciably smaller than South Island ones. Humeri and tarsometatarsi from the North Island were on average significantly shorter than those from the South Island. The regressions of humerus length and tarsometatarsus length on latitude were significant, and length and latitude were positively correlated. The North Island samples were too small to establish whether variation was clinal, and in the meantime the continued recognition of North and South Island subspecies seems warranted.

Kiore (Rattus exulans) predation on the eggs of the little shearwater (Puffinus assimilis haurakiensis)

Notornis, 43 (3), 147-153

A.M. Booth; E.O. Minot; R.A. Fordham; J.G. Innes (1996)

Article Type: Paper

Evidence of predation by kiore (Rattus exulans) on little shearwater (Puffinus assimilis haurakiensis) eggs was obtained on Lady Alice Island, Hen and Chickens Group, during the 1994 breeding season. A time-lapse video camera filmed a kiore removing a little shearwater egg from a nesting chamber. This egg was later recovered, showing signs of damage typical of rat predation. A kiore was also filmed breaking open and eating a punctured hen egg that had been placed in a shearwater burrow. Sixteen (55%) of the 29 nests monitored failed during incubation, and predation by kiore was the probable cause of failure for up to 75% of these nests.

New Zealand white-capped mollymawks (Diomedea cauta steadi) breeding with black-browed mollymawks (D. melanophrys melanophrys) at Antipodes Islands, New Zealand

Notornis, 43 (1), 1-6

G. Clark; C.J.R. Robertson (1996)

Article Type: Paper

Records of all mollymawk sightings on Bollons Island, Antipodes Islands, are reviewed. Data are provided to confirm the breeding record for black-browed mollymawk Diomedea melanophrys melanophrys and add a new breeding record for the NZ white-capped (shy) mollymawk Diomedea cauta steadi.
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