ZOO NOTES

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 189, 30 April 1918, Page 8

ZOO NOTES

(By .Tohn Crewes, ex-President of tho Wellington Zoological .Society.) The mandarin drakes in the Zoo are again in exquisitely beautiful condition. There is also a magnificent show of pheasants. A gcodly number of young males that last year were as plain as liens have for (lie first time arrayed themselves in the peculiar glories of their sex. The goldens are brilliant; the halfbreds arc gorgeous; and there are several i superb birds that seem to ba three-quar- ! ters, between goldens and amhersts. An i addition to the squirrels also is attract- ; ing much attention, tho agility, playful- ! npss, and beauty of squirrels ever being interesting to their human patrons of all ag(M. The reptiles that are now exhibited in some of the aquarium tanks .must also be reckoned among the fascinating features of tho exhibition. Tho bright side of the Zoo is worthy of high pulogium, and the number of intelligent observers that visited it last Sunday should have greatly encouraged Councillor Frost ana the co-workers who, with liim, have, despite many drawbacks and discouragements, made the Zoo what it is. The Lions. The show of'lions in tho Wellington Zoo Is something to be proud of; and, as Councillor George Frost has dono more than any other person to provide this for us, a label should be prepared to be worded something like this—Qeorgu, a worthy'successor of the young lion that was, by vote of tho people of Wellington, publicly named George, in honour of Councillor George Frost. I have hitherto challenged the world to dispute that of "King Dick," tho pioneer lion of the AVellington Zoo, is tho handsomest living lion's head in captivity. But whether the venerable "King" wi'li hold that distinction much longer is an open question. The head of youn:f George promises to excel in majesty even that of the illustrious grandfather. The label.should bo attached to the pen in which tho lion now up near, tho leopards is located. In the afternoon of tho holiday with which the latest anniversary of the establishment of the province of Wellington* was honoured, I rejoiced at seeing tho large number of intelligent, happy girls and boys that observed tho feeding of the lions in the Zoo. There is much thart is interesting in that performance; and tlio child, or the adult, that has thoroughly studied it knows more about tho nature and character of real lions than is known by some writers of books, somo preachers of sermons, and some learned solicitors, barristers, Judges, and schoolmasters. Now, if to educate is to improve by drawing attention to, I suggest that the Zoo is for young children tho best educational institution in New- Zealand. Some evidence of this I gathered a few days ago. While I was waiting for 3.30 p.m., King Dick, the pioneer lion of the Zoo, and Mary, his btloved consort, were, as usual, briskly moving to and fro, with that rhythmical swing well known to visitors, who seem never to tiro of watching them, and behind me an attentive mother with her two children were engaged in conversation. I havo forgotten the name of tho younger, who was a very young little girl, but for tho purpose of this paragraph her name snail' bo Nellie. "Nellie," or whatever tho child's Christian namo was, said the mother, "What do you think of those great animals—aren't they wonderful?" "Wonderful I" the iittle girl exclaimed; "they are living lions, they are real living lions. Did you think I didn'j; know I they wero living lions? I can soo that; they couldn't walk about liko this if they were not living. - There wad one living animal in tho museum, wasn't there, Mammy? Mammy, didn't wo see ono living animal in tho musoum?" "Oh!" said the brother of tho little girl, "that was only a small thing, about so long," showing tho measurement by the spaco behveen his two hands, which wore held up in demonstration. This tho little girl disputed, and, holding up her hands, challenged mammy to. adjudicate on the length of tho tuatara that had evidently beon scon in a museum. Tho accuracy and earnestness of that very young child confirmed' my belief that for tho training of children to observe, appraiso, remember, and reason tho use of living things is highly commendable. Congratulation. I was startled when, recently, Councillor Castle, looking into tho largo cor-ner-pen opposite the Zoo lake, said: "There are two birds that, seem to be young Wonga-Wonga pigeons." The Wonga-AVonga is a largo pigeon that has boon much admired for both tho beauty of its plumago and tlio whiteness of its fiesh. A writer, writing in the Official Guido to tho Tzondon Zoological Society's Gardens in Regent's Park a few years app, when describing one of its aviaries and the doves and pigeons in it, said: "Many of the rarer and more beautiful forms aro kept in the aviary that is now being described. Such aro tho WongaWonga pigeon of Australia (Lcucosarcia picata), an excellent table bird but a shy breeder." This shyness seems to 'have prevented fanciers from domesticat-

ing oue of the most desirable species of tho Columbida. I havo been told that the two young birds to which Councillor Castle directed my attention were born in the Wellington Zoo, and I cordially congratulate the managers of our municipal menagerie on having reared birds tliaf so rarely breed in captivity. The Broken-Headed Ostricli. That the last hon ostrich that was m tho Wellington. Zoo is dead I heartily believe. But I am not convinced that any man, woman, girl or boy, with a stick, or a stone, or a oatapult, killed the unfortunate bird. That there is in many of the persona thai, visit a zoo no inherent tendency to mischief, and that some mischievous persons, for fun' or from other foolish motives, do sometimes act unwisely and destructively or injuriously, I know; but, on tup other linnd, tho probabiliiies are so 6trongiy against the suggestion that, the ostrich was killed by some true; or'mischievous person, that, uniess there is evidence very different from any that I have read, the suggestion should not be tolerated. Tlio ostriches' yard is in the heart of tho Zoo, near a path, and only a. few feet from tho curator's house; the boundary fence of the yard is of wire-nettwig, the mesh of which seems much narrower that the head, of an ostrich; the bones of an ostrich are, 1 believe, remarkably brittle; and the dividing fence between two sections of tho yard is of ordinary fencing wire. Now, on these facts, and fiom what I have seen of ostriches, I submit that, given tito male ostriches on oue 'side of a four or fivc-wiro fence, and a nuilo ostrich and a female of the same species on the other, when such a meshed fenco as the existing one surrounds the whole enclosure, and the dividing fenco is so very open, the odds on tlio hen ostrich having been killed by the powerful peck of a male bird are more than a thousand to ono against the suggestion that some person, with a stick or a catapult, killed the ostrich. 'Of course, there is always the one to be considered, even although against a thousand. And I must remember that I am only one, and the members of the City Counoil number fifteen and a Mnyor; but I, as a simplo old reviewer of and ostriches, say a fence to separate jealous ostriohes should have a mesh ns fine as that used to protect ostriches from tho foliy of funny men and women.