From December 1973 to March 1975, the food of feral cats (Felis catus) was studied at Macquarie Island; during the 1974-75 and 1975-76 summers, the food of great skuas (Stercorarius skua lonnbergi) was also partly studied. Data were obtained on the numbers, species and locations of remains of burrow-nesting petrels left by these two predators. Seven species of burrow-nesting petrels were identified from the remains found. These results when considered with previous records of burrow-nesting petrels at Macquarie Island indicate their status, relative abundance and distribution.
Birds were counted in four forest areas and an area of cutover forest in early summer. Marked differences in species composition and numbers counted were found. The role of soil fertility and vegetation in determining differences is discussed. Some observations on seasonal movements are given and a comparison is made with counts made at Reefton. The implications of these findings for reserves in Westland forests is discussed.
1979. pp. 247, 48 colour plates. Reviewers, D. H. Brathwaite & J. Warham
Fossil counterparts of giant penguins from the North Pacific, by Storrs L. Olson & Yoshikazu Hasegawa. 1979. Science 206, 9 November.
Subfossil remains of a large flightless coot were first discovered on Chatham Island (Fulica chathamensis), and subsequently in the South Island by (Fulica prisca). Further discoveries have considerably enlarged the geographic range on the New Zealand mainland. However, general agreement on the number of forms admitted and their generic and specific status has yet to be reached.
This paper examines the field identification, distribution, and taxonomy of the six species of Pachyptila. Particular attention is given to the identification of storm-cast material. The data include observations of prions at sea, on their breeding grounds, and 10,086 specimens examined over a 21-year period from 1958 to 1979. The validity of the six recognised species of Pachyptila is reaffirmed, and one subspecies each of the fairy prion (Pachyptila turtur) and the fulmar prion (Pachyptila crassirostris) is retained. The need for further ecological data, better food analyses, and carefully defined behavioural studies is stressed. The value of biochemical genetics for elucidating the speciation mechanisms of Pachyptila emphasises the preliminary nature of the present findings.