Three voyages of a naturalist, being an account of many little- known islands in three oceans visited by the "Valhalla," R.Y.S.;

LIBRARY

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
DAVIS

THREE VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST.

THREE VOYAGES

OF A

NATURALIST

BEING AN ACCOUNT OF

MANY LITTLE-KNOWN ISLANDS IN THREE
OCEANS VISITED BY THE " VALHALLA " R.Y.S.

BY

M. J. NICOLL

MEMBER OF THE BRITISH ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY

THE RT. HON. THE EARL OF CRAWFORD

K.T. F.R.S.

WITH FIFTY-SIX PLATES FOUR SKETCH-MAPS AND TEXT ILLUSTRATIONS

WFTHERBY & CO.

326 HIGH HOLBORN LONDON

1909

LIBRARY

IHSUVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
DAVIS

THE FIBST EDITION
WAS PUBLISHED IN MARCH, 1908.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

Introductory Note xi.

Preface to the Second Edition - xv.

Preface to the First Edition - xix.

A VOYAGE BOUND AFRICA.

CHAP.

I.— St. Paul's Rocks - - - 1

II. — Fernando de Noronha - - - - 11

III.— Itaparica, Bahia - 21

IV.— South Trinidad 37

V. — Martin Vas - - - 59

VI. — Tristan da Cunha - 63

VII.— Dassen Island - 70
VIII. — Mozambique Channel and Comoro

Islands - - 82

IX. — La Foret d'Ambre, Madagascar 93

X. — Glorioso Island - - - 100

XI. — Assumption Island - - 107

XII. — Aldabra Island - - - - 114

XIII. — Seychelle Islands - - 125

A VOYAGE TO THE WEST INDIES.

XIV. — Martinique - - 139

XV. — Grand Cayman Island - - 144

XVI.— Little Cayman Island - - - 152

16+Z

vi VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
A VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD.

CHAP. PAGE

XVII.— Monte Video and the Straits of Magellan 157

XVIII. — Punta Arenas, Straits of Magellan - 165

XIX.— Smythe's Channel— Gulf of Penas—

Valparaiso - 175

XX.— Easter Island - 191

XXI.— Pitcairn Island - - 207

XXII.— Tahiti, Society Islands - 215

XXIII.— Tutuila Island, Samoa - 226

XXIV.— Upolu Island, Samoa- - 231

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

FACING
PAGE

Frontispiece—" Valhalla," R.Y.S.

The Earl of Crawford and the live Birds and

Animals collected in 1906 . . . . . . xx.

Sacred Ibises (about two months old) from Dassen

Island . . . . . . . . . . . .xxvii.

Sacred Ibises (about four months old) from Dassen

Island . . . . . . . . . . . . xxx.

St. Paul's Rocks, mid-Atlantic . . . . . . 5

Some of the Sharks caught off St. Paul's Rocks . . 9
Frigate birds on Glorioso Island . . . . . . 16

Camp on Itaparica Island . . . . . . . . 21

Sketch of a Marine Animal, seen by Mr. E. G. B.

Meade- Waldo and the Author off the Coast of

Brazil 22

The Lake, Itaparica Island . . . . . . . . 29

South Trinidad Island, near the landing place . . 36
Tree-ferns on South Trinidad Island . . . . 39

Noddy Tern at the nest, South Trinidad Island . . 41
Petrels on South Trinidad Island. Downy young

of (Estrelata trinitatis, and adults of

(E. arminjoniana . . . . . . . . 43

Crawford's White Tern at its nesting place on

South Trinidad Island . . . . . . . . 46

Adult and young of Sula piscator on South

Trinidad Island 48

The " Crown " rock, South Trinidad Island . . 50

vm VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

FACING
PAGE

South Trinidad Island, from the highest peak . . 52

The tree-fern forest, South Trinidad Island . . 57

The Islets of Martin Vas 60

Tristan da Cunha 64

Jackass Penguin on the nest . . . . . . 73

Jackass Penguins, Dassen Island . . . . . . 75

Jackass Penguins, Dassen Island . . . . . . 77

Cape Cormorants, with sacred Ibises in the back-
ground, Dassen Island . . . . . . . . 78

Jackass Penguins, Dassen Island . . . . . . 80

Virgin forest, Mayotte Island . . . . . . 85

Foret d'Ambre, Madagascar 89

The edge of the Foret d'Ambre, Madagascar . . 90

Foret d'Ambre, Madagascar 95

Foret d'Ambre, Madagascar 96

Landing at Glorioso Island . . . . . . 100

Glorioso Island 103

Glorioso Island 105

Assumption Island . . . . . . . . 108

Nest of Pink-footed Gannet (Sula piscator) on

Assumption Island .. 112

Abbott's Ibises on Aldabra Island . . . . . . 114

Abbott's Ibises on Aldabra Island .. .. .. 117

Abbott's Ibises on Aldabra Island . . . . . . 119

River near Port Victoria, Mah6, Seychelles . . 121

Mahe Islands, Seychelles . . . . . . 1 23

Cascade, Mahe, Seychelles. Home of the Alec-

troenas pulcherrima . . . . . . 1 25

Water-worn granite rocks, summit of Mahe,

Seychelles 126

Landing place, Felicite Island, Seychelles. . . . 128

ILLUSTRATIONS ix

FACING
PAGE

Valley of the " Coco-de-Mer," Praslin Island,

Seychelles .. .. 130

" Coco-de-Mer," Praslin Island, Seychelles . . 132

" Coco-de-Mer," Praslin Island, Seychelles . . 135

St. Pierre, Martinique, one year after the eruptions 139

Leaf Insects from the Seychelles . . . . . . 142

Female Leaf Insect from the Seychelles . . . . 146

Tierra-del-Fuegians alongside the " Valhalla " in

Smythe's Channel 165

Gray's Harbour, Straits of Magellan . . . . 185

Gray's Harbour, Straits of Magellan . . . . 188

Human Skulls from Easter Island 192

Pitcairn Island 208

Wooden house built by the Mutineers of the

" Bounty," Pitcairn Island 212

Tautira, Tahiti 220

SKETCH-MAPS OF THE VOYAGES.

PAGE

Sketch-map of Voyage round Africa . . . . xxxii.

Sketch-map of Voyage to the West Indies . . 138
Sketch-map of the first part of the Voyage round

the World 156

Sketch-map of the second part of the Voyage

round the World.. 238

INTRODUCTORY NOTE.

BY THE RIGHT HON. THE EARL OF CRAWFORD,
K.T., F.R.S.

IT is usually supposed that when a man takes
upon himself to write a Preface or an Introduction
to the work of another, he should have some
qualification — some knowledge of the subject to
be dealt with. It is best, therefore, that I do at
once disavow any qualification, and confess to a
lamentable ignorance on the subject of Natural
History. My only desire is to relate in a few
words how it came to pass that the possibility of
the writing of the book arose.

For many years it has been my lot to live in
close communion with two inseparable hangers-on
—the one rheumatism, the other asthma. I
found relief by going to sea, provided it was
towards the Sunny South. The cold and damp
of a home winter I have not faced for fifteen
years.

In 1902 I was preparing to go round the world
when one of my brother trustees of the British
Museum suggested that I ought to bring back

xn VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

something for the Natural History Department.
The result was that I was strongly recommended
to obtain the assistance of Mr. Michael Nicoll.

Such was the beginning of a friendship which
has endured the severest known test — that of
living together at peace on a ship through long
calms.

We have had three voyages, in the course of
which we have passed many southern seas, calling
at various islands, and always adding to the store
for the Museum — thus sailing down the east coast
of South America through the Straits of Magellan
up to Valparaiso in Chili, we struck out west for
an eight thousand mile run across the Southern
Pacific Ocean, visiting islands new to us all, each
more charming than the other, and so home after
going round the world. Again, we fitted out for
a less ambitious cruise in the West Indies and
the Gulf of Mexico.

How we again set forth for the wilder and less
known Southern Indian Ocean, taking on the
way the islands of the South Atlantic — running
through the seas of Vanderdecken, though we did
not see the Phantom Ship ; how we encountered
two nice little cyclones on the Madagascar coast,
and got into the group of practically unknown
islands to the North, where man is so seldom seen
that the birds take no heed of the visitor ; how
we got ashore, and got off again without hurt —
all these things are told in the pages that follow.

INTRODUCTION xni

•But what those pages do not tell falls to my lot.
It is to say how much I and my fellow trustees
of the British Museum have appreciated the work
done by Mr. Nicoll, his skill in the preparation
of the many hundreds of specimens now in the
National collections, and his whole-hearted zeal
for his favourite science.

Time severs many links and brings to some
promotion. Thus, on his return from our last
voyage, Mr. Nicoll was appointed by the Egyptian
Government to the post of second in charge of
the Zoological Gardens at Giza, near Cairo, and
thus our rambles together are as of the past ;
but I trust that the pleasant hours in many and
various scenes of the world may be brought to
life again in this book, which I hope will run to
many editions.

My "rolling stone" has started. "Valhalla" is
now taking in her stores, and ere these words of
mine see the ink of the press, I shall be well on
my way to the far East — alas, without my
companion.

CRAWFORD.
September, 1907.

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

IN the present Edition it has been found necessary
to make but few corrections, the only material
alteration being in Chapter XX., where I had
stated that Easter Island, when first discovered,
was uninhabited. This, however, was not the
case. All the criticisms made in the many kind
reviews of the First Edition have been carefully
attended to, but I must draw the attention of
one of my critics to the fact that the " sea-
monster," recorded and figured in the following
pages, was not only " about in the moonlight,"
but was seen by Mr. Meade- Waldo and myself at
10.15 in the morning !

A few of my readers have objected to the
order in which the various places we visited are
described. These I would refer to the Preface of
the First Edition (which is printed intact in this
new Edition), where my reasons are, I venture to
think, sufficiently given.

With regard to the birds, it has been found
necessary to make the following alterations : —

FIRST. — The Diving Petrel from Tristan da
Cunha (named by me Pelecanoides dacunhce) is said

xvi PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION

by the latest authority on the Petrels — Dr. F.
Du Cane Godman — to be not a new species but
the same as the Diving Petrel of the southern
Indian Ocean, Pelecanoides exsul. It had not
before been recorded from Tristan da Cunha, and
its discovery on this island makes a great and
somewhat remarkable extension to its range.

SECOND. — " Wilson's " Petrel from South
Trinidad is now acknowledged by the same
authority* to be identical with Arminjon's Petrel
(CEstrelata arminjoniana) ; this I pointed out as
being probable in the First Edition (p. 62).

With regard to the mammals, reptiles, etc., I
have no corrections to make, but should point out
that on pages 87 and 88 of the First Edition I
inadvertently described a new form of Fruit-Bat.
I there gave a short description of the Mayotte
Fruit-Bat, which now proves to be separable from
those of the other Comoro Islands. The name
Pteropus comorensis, which I used in referring to
this Fruit-Bat, was a nomen nudum (a name
unaccompanied by a diagnosis), and, therefore,
this name will in future have to stand as that of
the Mayotte Fruit-Bat.

Except where otherwise stated, all the plates
in this book are from photographs taken by
myself. That of the human skulls from Easter
Island is from two incomplete and very old and
brittle specimens in my possession.

* c/. F. Du Cane Godman, " A Monograph of the Petrels," p. 230.

PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION xvn

While thanking my readers and critics for their
very kind reception of the First Edition of this
little book, I venture to hope that a like toleration
may be extended to the Second Edition.

M. J. N.

GIZA, EGYPT,

August, 1909.

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.

LORD CRAWFORD has explained in his most kind
Introduction to this little book how it came to
pass that I accompanied him on three delightful
cruises in his yacht " Valhalla."

To visit so many out-of-the-way spots, and to
see so much of the world under these charming
circumstances, was an ideal experience and a
generous education. Seldom does it fall to the
lot of a naturalist to be given the opportunity
of examining the fauna of so many rarely- visited
places, nor can such experiences fail to produce
matter for life-long reflection. No words of mine
can express adequately the gratitude I feel to my
ever-kind and generous host for having provided
the means to enjoy these rare and never-to-be-
forgotten experiences ; I can but say that what-
ever success may have been achieved in making
collections during these voyages is due to Lord
Crawford's ever-ready help and encouragement.

I should like also to offer my very best thanks
to Dr. P. L. Sclater, F.R.S., to whom I am in-
debted for my introduction to Lord Crawford.

B2

xx VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

I am but one of many young ornithologists who
have been started and encouraged in their career
by Dr. Sclater.

In the following pages I have devoted a chapter
to each of the most interesting and the least-known
islands or regions explored. Some places were
visited more than once, and in such cases all my
observations have been brought together, so that
the course of each voyage has not been always
strictly adhered to. It will, therefore, be well
to give a brief itinerary of each voyage, and to
set down the chief results obtained.

First, however, I must tell of the good ship
that carried us safely through calms and storms
by sail and steam for over 72,000 miles.
" Valhalla," R.Y.S., is, I believe, the only ship-
rigged yacht in the world. She is of 1700 tons
displacement, and is fitted with auxiliary screw,
which, under favourable conditions, will drive her
through the water at a speed of about 10 J to 11
knots an hour. It is under sail, however, that
" Valhalla " is at her best, and on many occasions
we logged 16 knots per hour. A better " sea "
ship has probably never been built, and under the
worst conditions it was rarely that she took any
water aboard. The way in which she rode out a
cyclone off the Mozambique coast was wonderful ;
the waves towered to a height beyond belief,
yet not a drop of water came aboard, nor was any
damage sustained. In fact, the only serious

CO

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION xxi

mishap experienced during my voyages occurred
off Cape Guardafui, in 1903, when a sudden whirl-
wind snapped the jibboom, hurling it into the air
like a straw.

" Valhalla " was the first ship to be fitted with
the " Brougham patent electrical steering-gear,"
an invention which makes steering possible from
any part of the ship. In 1905 she took part in
the famous yacht race for the German Emperor's
Cup, from Sandy Hook to the Lizard, and, although
by far the largest yacht, she came in an easy
third.

The accommodation on board is palatial —
most ample " headroom," large cabins, and
electric light throughout. The freezing room is
capable of carrying many tons of meat, sufficient
for a very long cruise. The total number of
crew carried, including officers, engineers, and
stewards, was about sixty-five. Indeed, under
any consideration, a better or more beautiful
yacht could not be imagined.

FIRST VOYAGE.

DURING the first voyage our party consisted of
Lord Crawford, Major L. B. Wilbraham, Dr.
W. B. Macdonald, and myself. We left Cowes
on 19th November, 1902, on a voyage which
lasted rather more than eight months, and during
this time 38,000 miles were covered.

After calling for coal at Lisbon, Madeira, the

xxn VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Canaries, and Cape Verde Islands, we ran down
the Atlantic coast of South America, calling at
some of the islands, and visiting Bahia and Monte-
video for coal, thence through the Straits of
Magellan and Smythe's Channel into the South
Pacific. From Valparaiso we sailed westwards
amongst the South Sea Islands ; thence through
Torres Straits into the Indian Ocean. After
leaving Ceylon we steamed south-westwards until
the African coast was sighted, hoping — and in
this we were partly successful — to escape the fury
of the monsoon. The remainder of the voyage
home was performed by way of the Red Sea and
Mediterranean, and, after a pleasant passage
through these waters, Cowes was reached on 1st
August, 1903.

Below is given a detailed itinerary of this
voyage :—

Lisbon, 24th to 26th November, 1902 ;

Madeira, 29th to 30th November ;

Las Palmas, 1st to 3rd December ;

St. Vincent, Cape Verde Islands, 10th to

12th December ;
St. Paul's Rocks, Mid-Atlantic, 17th to 18th

December ;

Fernando de Noronha, 20th to 22nd December;
Bahia, Brazil, 26th December to 5th January,

1903 ;

Montevideo, 14th January to 20th January ;
Straits of Magellan, 28th January to 5th

February ;
Smythe's Channel, 5th to 10th February ;

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION XXHI

Valparaiso, 14th to 24th February ;
Easter Island, 10th to 13th March ;
Pitcairn Island, 22nd to 23rd March ;
Tahiti, Society Islands, 31st March to 17th

April ;
Tutuila Island, Samoan Group, 22nd to 24th

April ;
Apia, Upolu Island, Samoa, 25th to 29th

April ;

Suva, Fiji Islands, 3rd to 6th May ;
Thursday Island, Torres Straits, 18th to 23rd

May;

Singapore, 3rd to 9th June ;
Colombo, 17th to 20th June ;
Aden, 2nd to 3rd July ;
Suez, 10th July ;
Port Said, llth to 13th July ;
Gibraltar, 22nd to 26th July ;
Cowes, 1st August.

The collections made during this voyage com-
prised some two hundred and twenty bird-skins,
thirty mammals, a few hundred fishes and reptiles,
and several hundred butterflies, moths, and other
insects.

No new species of bird or mammal was obtained,
but a series of skins of the Pitcairn Warbler —
(Tatar e vaughani) — was of considerable interest.
The types of this species are spirit specimens in
the British Museum : no skins of the bird had
ever been collected before; moreover, the fact
that the first plumage of the young differs very
considerably from that of the adult of this warbler
was unknown until we obtained specimens.

xxiv VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Another interesting discovery we made was
that Richardson's skua (Stercorarius crepidatus)
winters in great numbers in the Bay of
Valparaiso — many hundred miles further south
on the west coast of America than it has previously
been found.

The two peculiar species of land-birds which
inhabit Fernando de Noronha, the Brazilian
convict island, are also perhaps worthy of notice,
on account of their rarity in collections. These
are a flycatcher (Elainea ridleyana), and a
warbler (Vireo gracilirostris), which were pre-
viously represented in the British Museum by the
type-specimens only.

Amongst the fishes obtained during this voyage
one — Corvina crawfordi — from the harbour of
Montevideo, proved to be new to science.

A species of microlepidoptera — Pyroderces
crawfordi Walsingham — from Tahiti, was also
previously unknown, and another specimen of
this group of little moths — Hdiostobes mathewi —
from Valparaiso, forms the only other known
specimen in addition to the type.

SECOND VOYAGE.

THE second voyage upon which we started from
Cowes on 18th December, 1903, was to the West
Indies. Our party for this cruise consisted of
Lord Crawford, Mr. C. R. Pawson, Dr. R. C.
MacWalters, and myself, though at Barbadoes

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION xxv

we were joined by Colonel C. E. Swaine, who
visited all the West Indian Islands with us, but
left us at Florida for a trip through the United
States.

The voyage occupied about five months, and
after calling at the Canaries for coal we steamed
across to Barbadoes, thence to St. Lucia, St.
Vincent, and Grenada, afterwards running up the
entire chain of islands to Jamaica, the Caymans,
and then on to Cuba. Thence we proceeded to
Florida, where some excellent tarpon fishing was
enjoyed, and after a flying visit to Key West,
for the purpose of coaling, we returned home
via Bermuda and the Azores, reaching Cowes
on 8th May, 1904. An itinerary of this voyage
is appended : —

Madeira, 24th to 27th December, 1903 ;

Teneriffe, Canary Islands, 28th December

to 1st January, 1904 ;
Barbadoes, West Indies, 15th to 21st

January ;

St. Lucia, 22nd to 25th January ;
St. Vincent, 25th to 27th January ;
Cariacou, 27th to 28th January ;
Grenada, 28th January to 1st February ;
St. Lucia (second visit), 2nd to 5th February ;
Martinique, 5th to 7th February ;
Dominica, 7th to 10th February ;
Montserrat, 10th to 12th February ;
St. Kitts, 12th to 15th February ;
Antigua, 15th to 17th February ;
St. Kitts (second visit), 17th to 18th February;
St. Croix, 19th to 21st February ;

xxvi VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

St. Thomas, 21st to 24th February ;
Porto Rico, 24th to 26th February ;
Jamaica, 29th February to 8th March ;
Grand Cayman, 9th to 13th March ;
Little Cayman, 13th to 14th March ;
Havana, Cuba, 17th to 21st March ;
Punta Gorda, Florida, 22nd March to 4th April;
Key West, Florida, 5th to 8th April ;
Bermuda, 13th to 20th April ;
St. Michael's, Azores, 29th April to 2nd May ;
Cowes, 8th May.

The number of birds obtained during this trip
to the West Indies somewhat exceeded four
hundred, of which the following three proved to
be new to science : —

Dendrceca crawfordi, from Little Cayman ;

Vireo laurae, from Grenada ;

Pitangus caymanensis, from Grand Cayman.

The birds found in all the West Indian Islands
are of great interest, as no two islands have an
avifauna exactly similar, so that all our collections
were of value. The Cayman Islands specimens
are worthy of particular notice, as nearly all the
resident birds are peculiar to the islands, and
there were previously very few specimens from
this locality in the British Museum.

About one hundred fishes and reptiles were
also obtained, but not one was new, nor were
there any of great rarity. The most interesting,
perhaps, were the five fine specimens of tarpon,
which we caught off the Florida coast. These
ranged in size from 40 to 95 pounds in weight,

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PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION xxvn

and I preserved the skins of four of them on our
homeward voyage.

About two hundred butterflies, moths, and
other insects were also obtained.

The most interesting islands visited during our
sojourn in the West Indies were Martinique,
famous for its volcanic eruptions in 1902, and the
Cayman Islands, which have been but seldom
visited by a naturalist.

THIRD VOYAGE.

IT was not until the autumn of 1905 that I again
set out in the " Valhalla " on my last and,
perhaps, most interesting voyage.

On this cruise we had a somewhat larger party,
for besides Lord Crawford, the Hon. Walter
Lindsay, Dr. A. Dean, and myself, Mr. E. G. B.
Meade- Waldo was invited to accompany us for
the purpose of collecting insects, and thus I was
able to devote my whole time to birds, mammals,
fishes, and reptiles, with the consequence that
examples of several new species were obtained.

We sailed from Cowes on 8th November, 1905r
and, after calling at Las Palmas, ran down amongst
the South Atlantic Islands to the Cape of
Good Hope; thence northwards through the in-
hospitable waters of the Mozambique Channel
to Madagascar and the little-known islands
which lie to the north-west. After visiting the
Seychelles we returned home via the Suez Canal,

xxvm VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

completing a voyage of seven months, during which
time we had covered about 19,000 miles. The
following is the detailed itinerary : —

Las Palmas, 13th to 16th November, 1905 ;
Put back to Las Palmas owing to illness of

one of the crew — 17th November ;
St. Paul's Rocks, 2nd December ;
Bahia, 10th to 30th December ;
South Trinidad, 3rd to 5th January, 1906 ;
Martin Vas, 5th January ;
Tristan da Cunha, 17th to 20th January ;
Cape Town, 28th January to 8th February ;
Durban, 14th to 15th February ;
Mayotte, Comoro Islands, 23rd February to

3rd March ;

Diego Suarez, Madagascar, 4th to 9th March ;
Glorioso Island, 10th to 1 1th March ;
Assumption Island, 12th to 13th March ;
Aldabra, 13th to 16th March ;
Aground on Assumption, 16th to 17th March ;
Mahe, Seychelles Islands, 22nd March to

2nd April ;
Praslin and Felicite Islands, Seychelles, 2nd

to 5th April ;

Mahe (second visit), 5th to 8th April ;
Aden, 14th to 17th April ;
Suez, 23rd April ;
Port Said, 24th to 27th April ;
Gibraltar, 5th to 8th May ;
Cowes, 13th May, 1906.

The results obtained during this voyage were
more important than those of the two preceding
ones.

The collection of bird-skins, numbering five

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION xxix

hundred, contained specimens of eight species
new to science. Besides these there were many
rarities, few of the birds of the small coral islands
to the north-west of Madagascar having been
previously represented in the National collec-
tion.

The new species discovered were as follows : —
A white tern (Gygis crawfordi) from South

Trinidad ;
A diving petrel (Pelecanoides dacunhae) from

Tristan da Cunha ;
A paradise-flycatcher (Terpsiphone lindsayi)

from Mayotte, Comoro Islands ;
A swift (Cypsdus mayottensis) from Mayotte,

Comoro Islands ;
A ground-cuckoo (Centropus assumptionis)

from Assumption Island ;
A turtle-dove (Turtur assumptionis) from

Assumption Island ;

A heron (Butorides crawfordi) from Assump-
tion Island ;
A sunbird (Cinnyris mahei) from Seychelles

Islands.

Many fishes and reptiles were collected, but
none of these proved to be new or of great
interest, except a large specimen of the ribbon fish
(Regalecus), which was obtained at Cape Town.
This fish is rare in collections, its pelagic habits
making its capture difficult.

Of the insects obtained I learn that several
belong to new species, or are otherwise rare or

xxx VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

important, but at present I believe nothing has
been published concerning them.

The most interesting islands visited were
undoubtedly South Trinidad, Dassen Island,
Glorioso, Assumption, Aldabra, the Comoros, and
Seychelles, all of which have been fully dealt with
in their proper place in the following pages.

This, then, is a brief outline of my three voyages
on the " Valhalla," and if some of the notes in
the following chapters are not as full as is desirable
I must remind my readers that our stay in many
of the " ports of call " was of very short dura-
tion— a difficulty only to be expected on a long
voyage, when coaling or other necessary though
wearisome proceedings effect frequent delays in
the larger ports.

If, however, my account of our experiences
should at some future time prove of use to any of
my readers who themselves set off for these
distant parts of the world in search of natural
history treasures, or if the following pages give
to the reader even a fraction of the pleasure
which I myself experienced in visiting the islands
therein portrayed, I shall feel that the book has
not been written wholly in vain.

M. J. N.
GIZA, EGYPT.

January, 1908.

•« .

Q

0)

A VOYAGE ROUND AFRICA.

SKETCH-MAP TO SHOW THE COURSE OF THE VOYAGE BOUND AFRICA.

CHAPTER I.

SAINT PAUL'S ROCKS.

SAINT PAUL'S ROCKS, situated in mid-Atlantic,
about 540 miles from the nearest point of the
coast of South America, and 15 miles north of
the equator, are probably the most interesting
rock-islets in the world.

Roughly about half a mile in circumference,
this group is composed of five peaks of rock, the
highest of which is only 64 feet above the level of
the sea. Darwin has stated* that " Saint Paul's
group is not volcanic, and thus forms the only
island in the world, with the exception of the
Seychelles, that is of neither volcanic nor coral
formation."

These rocks are surrounded by deep sea, and the
Challenger Expedition could discover no ridge
under the sea to connect them either with the
mainland or with the islands of Fernando de
Noronha, about 200 miles to the south.

Owing to their small size, Saint Paul's Rocks
cannot be seen, even in clear weather, from a

* " Voyage of the « Beagle.' "

B*

2: VQYAGES OF A NATURALIST
greater distance than eight miles. Their appear-
ance from a short distance is most peculiar, the
two highest peaks being white with the droppings
of the numerous sea-birds which nest on them,
while the remainder are of a deep greenish-black,
very dark in contrast to the white peaks.
The outlying rocks, as can be seen during the fall
of the swell, are much worn below the water-line.
My first visit to these interesting rocks was
made in 1902, during my first voyage with Lord
Crawford in the " Valhalla." They were sighted
from aloft at 1.30 p.m. on the 17th December,
and shortly afterwards became visible from the
deck.

Numbers of gannets appeared and circled round
the yacht, while, as we gradually drew near,
great numbers of birds were to be seen flying in
all directions round the highest peaks.

At 3.30 we were close in, and shortly afterwards
a boat was lowered and we set out for the shore.
The weather was perfectly fine, but, owing to a
slight swell, the surf was breaking on the rocks
in a most forbidding manner. As we rowed closer,
however, we found that, by waiting and choosing
the right moment, the boat could be backed in
to a projecting portion of the rock, and then, as
we rose on the swell, it was not difficult to jump
ashore.

Accordingly we backed in carefully, and took
our turn to wait for the lift of the swell and then

BOOBIES 3

jump. At one moment the rock towered above
us, at the next the boat flew upwards until it was
level with the landing place — then was the time
to jump, and as one jumped the boat was pulled
out clear of the surf. Thus one by one we landed
safely.

As soon as we were ashore we noticed a vast
number of crabs* crawling about in all directions.
Some of these crabs were of a green colour ; these
were the smaller and more numerous, perhaps the
younger ones, while others, which were larger,
were of a bright vermilion.

The landing place we had chosen was at the
foot of the highest peak, which Moseley calls
Booby Hill,f and certainly this name is well
chosen, for the peak was covered with boobies,
a species of gannet — Sula leucogaster — and their
nests were so close together that it was almost
impossible to walk without stepping on either eggs
or young. The young boobies, sometimes two
in a nest, were of all ages, from bare, newly-hatched
chicks to fully-fledged young.

The nest of this gannet is merely a collection of
old and dirty feathers and loose stones. Round
about each nest were quantities of flying fishes
in all stages of decay, brought there and disgorged
by the parent birds as food for the young. The
freshest part of this food supply, we soon discovered,

* Qrapsus strigosus.

f " Notes of a Naturalist on H.M.S. ' Challenger.' "

4 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

made excellent bait for the innumerable fishes
which swarmed round the rocks ; but as we
found later, by accident, the best and freshest
bait was to be procured by gently prodding an
old gannet while it was sitting on its nest, when
it would at once disgorge a fish.

It was by no means pleasant to walk about
amongst these nesting birds, and, indeed, we found
it to be a most painful proceeding, as both old and
young pecked viciously at our legs. The young
birds were especially annoying, and would get out
of their nests and follow us, snapping savagely
at our legs with their long sharp bills.

At the base of Booby Hill I came on a colony
of noddy terns.* This bird lays its single egg
on the bare rock. Most of the eggs were hard set,
and there were many young one of various ages.
Although very tame, the noddies were not so bold
as the boobies, and we did not succeed in catching*
more than one adult bird of this species with our
hands.

Running about among the noddies we saw a
turnstone,f a well-known visitor in the spring
and autumn to the shores of the British Isles.
In the winter it is distributed practically over
the whole world. This bird has not hitherto been
recorded from Saint Paul's Rocks, however, and
it was probably resting there while on migration.

Besides the birds already mentioned, a second

* Anous atolidtis. ^Strepailas interpret.

*, 4

NESTING AT ALL SEASONS 5

species of noddy tern — Micranous leucocapillus —
a smaller and darker bird than the common noddy,
was seen and obtained. This small tern was not
nearly so abundant as the larger species, and it
was not found nesting on Booby Hill. It was
also far more shy, and specimens were only
obtained with difficulty.

Thus there are only three species of birds which
nest on Saint Paul's Rocks, and they appear to
breed all the year round. The naturalists of the
" Beagle " landed there in February, those of the
" Challenger " in August, while we were there
in December, and on all of these occasions both
eggs and young were found.*

One of the sailors landed with us in the boat
to collect eggs for eating purposes. Whether
any of the crew ate any I never heard, but as nearly
all those we obtained were hard set, I should
imagine they did not. I have a vivid recollection,
too, of being called up in the small hours of the
following morning, with the news that several
of the eggs had hatched during the night.

From the top of the highest peak one could get
a good view of the rocks. They are divided up
into groups of jagged peaks, each group being
separated from its neighbour by a channel through
which the sea rushes with great violence. The

* Eight days previous to our first visit the Scottish Antarctic ship
" Scotia " visited St. Paul's Rocks. They did not effect a landing,
however, and no birds were obtained by them that we did not get
ourselves.

6 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

rock on which we landed, appeared to be the
largest, both in height and circumference.

At the foot of Booby Hill were several tidal
pools in which many species of small fishes were
seen, but all attempts to catch them with a net
proved futile. A great many fish were, however,
caught in the sea by fishing from the rocks. Of
these a species of "cavalli " weighed in some cases
as many as twelve pounds. Fishing here pre-
sented a somewhat unusual difficulty, for sharks*
swarmed in incredible numbers, and it was a
difficult task to avoid hooking them instead of
more serviceable game; indeed, so numerous
were the sharks that, on our return to the ship,
we found that during our absence no less than
twenty had been caught, all of them at no greater
distance than two hundred yards from the shore.

As to the other inhabitants of the rocks, Darwin
mentions the following : A pupiparous fly (living
as a parasite on the booby), a beetle (Quedius),
a tick, a small brown moth belonging to a genus
which feeds on feathers, and a woodlouse. Moseley
says : " We found two species of spiders ....
and, in addition to the insects noted by Darwin,
the larva of a moth, apparently a Tortrix, and
a small dipter .... but could not find either the
beetle or woodlouse."

We searched carefully and obtained specimens
of the feather-feeding moth, a tiny beetle, and a

* Carcharias sp. ?

SHARKS 7

small cricket, but failed to find either the wood-
louse or the spider. The pupiparous fly was,
however, noticed on the booby.

The heat on Saint Paul's Rocks was intense,
the sun, beating down on the bare rock, made the
place like an oven, and the only shade was that
thrown from Booby Hill towards evening.

Shortly before sunset we went on board, fully
determined to land the next morning on another
part of the rocks. Getting ofi was, we found, a
much more difficult business than landing, but
at last it was safely accomplished. Several fishes
and one bird were dropped into the water during
the process of embarkation, and they were im-
mediately taken by sharks, so it was just as well
that none of our party slipped into the water.
Perhaps a shark is not so dangerous to human
beings as it is usually supposed to be. That
there are some sharks which will attack a man
in the water is, of course, certain, but I think
that there are not very many that will do so.

During two visits made to Saint Paul's Rocks,
we tried to ascertain the nature of the food of
these sharks. We cut open and examined at
least thirty of them, but in only one did we find
the remains of food — a half -digested fish. Of
what, then, does their food consist ? It seems
incredible that they can feed entirely on fishes,
as anyone will realise who has seen the slow,
almost lazy, way in which they take their prey.

c2

8 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
Judging from the enormous number of sharks
round Saint Paul's Rocks, there should be a great
supply of food. Of course it is possible that they
can exist for a length of time without food. That
they go elsewhere for their food is not likely,
as these rocks are far away from any other land.

During our second visit a shark, which had been
shot with a rifle, sank, and as all its companions,
of which there were a great number round the ship
at the time, followed it down, and on reappearing
refused to look at our baits, I imagine that they
devoured it.

During the night of 17th December we steamed
slowly away from the rocks, but at daylight we
returned, and, lowering a boat, again landed.
This time we went ashore on one of the rocks at
the further end of the bay, which is formed by
the semi-circular nature of the group.

The weather being even finer and the sea
smoother than on the previous day, we landed
without difficulty, and at once climbed to the
highest peak of this rock, which is 60 feet in
altitude, and the second highest of the group.

Here I was delighted to find the nests of the
smaller noddy tern, which I have mentioned as
having been seen on the previous day. This
bird lays its egg in a most curiously constructed
nest. A mass of fine seaweed is cemented to a
small jutting ledge of rock, the cement being formed
of the droppings of the birds. We found

A SECOND VISIT 9

altogether four of these nests, each of which con-
tained a single egg. A few of the larger noddies
were also breeding here, but these, as on Booby
Hill, had laid their eggs on the bare rock, without
making any attempt at a nest. Moseley, in describ-
ing these bracket-like nests, suggests that it is
only the strongest birds that take possession of
the favourable points of the rock on which they
are placed, although he adds a footnote to the
effect that at the time of his visit he did not realize
that two species of noddies inhabit Saint Paul's
Rocks. It is, however, quite obvious that it
is not the strongest birds, but only the smaller
noddies, which occupy these ledges, since the
larger noddy was in no instance found nesting upon
them.

This day, while we were on the rocks, a ship
passed by, close in. It is only occasionally that
ships sight these rocks, and then only to determine
their exact position. No one, it is almost certain,
had landed on Saint Paul's Rocks since the visit
of the " Challenger " until we were there just
twenty-nine years later.

At 4.30 p.m. on the 18th December we sailed
away, bound for Fernando de Noronha, and as I
stood on deck and watched these interesting little
islands fading away in the distance, I little thought
that in three years' time it would be my fortune
to see them again.

It was on my third voyage in 1905 while on the

10 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
way to Brazil, that Lord Crawford suggested that
we should renew our acquaintance with these
little-known islands. Shaping our course ac-
cordingly, we sighted the rocks on 2nd December,
and, after a few minutes' steaming, drew up close
to our former landing place.

The weather was, unfortunately, by no means
so kind on this occasion as on our former visit.
A strong wind was blowing, and the surf was break-
ing with great fury on the foot of Booby Hill.
It might have been possible to land, but we de-
cided that, under the conditions prevailing,
it was too risky to venture close to the rocks,
therefore we were forced to content ourselves
with a distant view of the boobies.

Some time was, however, spent over shark
fishing, and we had hopes that the weather might
improve. A number of sharks were caught, arid
in this way we spent the greater part of a day.
As the sea was still high at sunset, Lord
Crawford decided that it was not worth while to
remain longer, so we sailed for Bahia, Brazil.

During this visit to Saint Paul's Rocks we
noticed that the birds were present in about the
same numbers as before. Boobies of all ages were
flying round the ship the whole time we were
there, and many noddies were also seen.

CHAPTER II.

FERNANDO DB NORONHA.

ON 20th December, 1902, the island of Fernando
de Noronha was sighted, and at 4 p.m. we dropped
anchor off the settlement.

On the island is a Brazilian convict settlement,
and permission to land is by no means easy to
obtain. The " Challenger " Expedition was not
allowed to make collections there, and Mr. Ridley,
who visited the island in 1887, was, previously to
our visit, the only naturalist who had collected
with any thoroughness. Of the three species of
land-birds which he obtained, two proved to be
new to science.

It was therefore a matter of great satisfaction
that, by the courtesy of the Governor of the
island, we were allowed to land and make natural
history collections, and not only that, but were
also generously provided with guides and
horses.

The most remarkable physical feature of
Fernando de Noronha is a gigantic column of
rock standing erect on the highest peak. This

12 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

column appears to be a smooth mass of rock,
and looks as if a slight push would send it head-
long into the sea. Another marked feature, which
is visible at a considerable distance, is an opening
through the sea-cliff at the south-western extremity
of the island. This boring has been made by the
sea, and is known as the " hole in the wall."

Just opposite our anchorage, and close to
the settlement, there was also a magnificent
" blowhole " in the cliff, through which the air
was driven, by the rise and fall of the sea, with a
loud roar every few seconds.

The island slopes gradually upwards from the
sea, and its general appearance from a little distance
is green and fertile. When we landed we found
that the cause of this apparent fertility was a
thick growth of fig trees, which covered most of
the island. Maize is, however, grown at certain
seasons of the year, and in a letter received by
Doctor Macdonald, some months after our visit,
one of the Englishmen living on the island describes
it as looking very green and fresh, owing to the
abundance of the maize crop.

As soon as a boat had been lowered we started
for the shore. The surf was breaking with such
fury on both the charted landing places that we
were forced to abandon the idea of getting in at
these spots ; but we found that, by backing the
boat to a jutting mass of rock, we could, with a
little difficulty, scramble ashore.

A CONVICT SETTLEMENT 13

The Governor, accompanied by two English-
men who manage the telegraph and Lloyd's
signal station, had come down to meet us, and
thus accompanied, we proceeded to the settle-
ment, where arrangements were made for a collect-
ing expedition on the following day.

While we were at the Governor's house a bugle
was sounded to summon the convicts. There
were about 200 of them, all under long sentences,
most of them having been convicted of murder.
One man, who was told off as a guide to our party,
was said to have committed seven murders, and
as he owned to five of them, I have no doubt that
we were correctly informed.

After their names had been called, the convicts
dispersed for the night, about fifty being locked
up in the gaol, and the rest going off to their own
houses. Most of these men have wives and
families, and, as far as we could judge, their
lives were not hard. They have to work three
hours a day for the State, but the rest of the day
they can spend as they like, though all have to
appear when the bugle is sounded in front of the
Governor's House.

Shortly after the convicts had dispersed we
started for the landing place. At its best this is
a difficult place from which to embark without
getting wet, and it was seldom that we landed
there or got away without getting soaked by the
waves.

14 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

The next morning we landed early, and,
walking to the settlement, were met by our English
friends, who had procured ponies for us on which
to cross the island. During our ride I saw a pair
of white terns (Gygis sp.), the most beautiful
of all the tropical sea-birds. Later on we saw
many of these terns in the various islands we
visited, and, whether hovering over the deep blue
sea of the South Pacific, or sailing round the palms
of a coral island in the Indian Ocean, they seem
equally at home ; wherever they were seen the
snow-white of their plumage and the deep dark
blue of their eyes made them ever memorable.

At the base of the column on the peak we made
our first acquaintance with frigate birds,* which
were sitting in numbers on some bushes; their
scarlet pouches were extended, and looked in the
distance like large red blossoms. It is only in
the breeding season that frigate birds develop
this curious ornament. When closely examined
it is seen that the pouch is formed by a bare patch
of skin on the throat, which can be expanded by
the bird at will. At times a great bladder as large
as a football is thus formed. When the bird is
taken in the hand and carefully examined, the
whole of the body appears to be inflated. On
skinning the bird it is at once seen that the whole
body is enveloped with a mass of air cells. The
pouch is only an exaggerated form of such an air

* Fregata aquila.

THE FRIGATE BIRD'S POUCH 15

cell, and, being larger than those on the rest of
the body, is more noticeable.

In the breeding season the pouch is constantly
being inflated, and, as a consequence, the skin of
the throat becomes stretched to such a degree
that when not inflated it hangs down in a loose
fold below the bill of the bird. It is only the
males that are able to inflate these pouches in this
way, the female having a non-inflatable patch of
bare skin of a duller colour on the throat. We
afterwards found that by inserting a bicycle
pump into the larynx of a freshly-killed male
frigate bird and pumping air into the throat,
the whole of the body, as well as the throat,
becomes inflated.

Along the shore we saw a species of the tropic,
or bo'sun, bird. This proved to be Phaethon
lepturus, and two fine specimens were obtained
by Lord Crawford. Several of them were flying
along the face of the cliff. The name " bo-sun "
is said to have been given to this bird on
account of its cry, which is supposed to resemble
the pipe of a boatswain's whistle. It must be
confessed, however, that the only cry we heard
it utter was a harsh scream not unlike that of a
tern.

A dove known as Zenaida auriculata, which
was originally, without doubt, introduced from
the mainland of South America, was extraordinarily
abundant on this island. They were very tame

16 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

and fearless, but were not nesting at the time of
our visit. Their note is a loud rattling " coo."

Insects were not very numerous — bees, dragon-
flies, beetles and crickets being the most notice-
able, while a little blue butterfly was frequently
seen fluttering along at our feet in the pathways
through the groves of fig trees.

In the houses we collected a number of
mosquitoes, apparently of one species only. It
seems that it is only in the houses that mosquitoes
are troublesome, as, during the whole of the time
we were on the island, we were not attacked by
these pests out-of-doors, and it was only when we
entered a house that they became a nuisance.

We went to the furthest extremity of the island
in a north-west direction from the settlement.
Here we found that the low fig trees, which seem
to be the principal trees of the island, were growing
in greater abundance than near the settlement.

In these trees numbers of small birds, which
in general appearance much resembled reed-
warblers, were flitting in and out among the leaves
in search of insects. These birds proved to be all
of the species called Vireo gracilirostris. Their
loud, but by no means unpleasant, song somewhat
resembled that of a pied wagtail, so familiar as a
British bird.

This part of the island was steep and precipitous.
We followed a path which took us down to the
seashore about one hundred feet below, and here

FRIGATE BIRDS ON GLORIOSO ISLAND.

(See also Chapter X.)

[1C

BRILLIANT FISHES 17

we noticed numbers of sooty terns*, which were
flying in a perpetual stream along the coast,
just above the breaking waves. These birds were
not nesting at the time of our visit, but we were
told that they bred in great numbers on one of the
smaller islets, which lies about half a mile off the
settlement. A few tropic-birds, which were flying
high overhead, appeared from their manner to have
nests, which were probably situated in the most
inaccessible parts of the cliff.

The tide was low, and we were able to walk
some distance along the shore. A long ledge of
rock was pointed out to us by one of our friends
as an excellent place for fishing, and in many
shallow pools we saw numbers of brilliantly
coloured fishes. Some of these were blue on the
back and yellow beneath. We made repeated
attempts to capture them, but to no purpose.

It is impossible to make a collection of the whole
fauna of an island during a visit of two or three
days, as we soon realized ; consequently I spent
most of my time searching for the three species of
land-birds which inhabit Fernando de Noronha.
Specimens of the dove and the warbler, which
have already been mentioned, were collected
during the morning. As soon as we returned
from our excursion across the island a visit was paid
to the Governor's garden, where, owing perhaps
to the greater abundance of trees, birds were more

* Sterna fuliginosa.

18 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

numerous, and the third species of land-bird,
a fly catcher, * was met with.

In this garden, which was nicely laid out and
enclosed by an iron fence, were many large
coconut trees bearing a quantity of fruit.
There were also some sapodillas, the fruit of which
was ripe at this time. It is greatly appreciated
by the people on Fernando de Noronha, and we
were persuaded to taste it. Externally it somewhat
resembles a small round potato; the flavour, how-
ever, is too much like that of the mango, the
suggestion of turpentine which pervades the latter
fruit being distinctly noticeable in the sapodilla.

Doves were swarming in the garden, every tree
and bush being apparently tenanted by them,
and the Governor showed us a cage full which had
recently been caught. They were, he told us,
excellent to eat.

There are no indigenous mammals on Fernando
de Noronha, but ratsf and mice;}: have been im-
ported or have escaped from ships. I did not get
any rats, but two mice which we shot were of a
pale fawn colour, and probably differed in colour,
at all events, from those of their ancestors which
first appeared on this island. One of the outlying
islets is called " Rat Island," but we were informed
that rats were no more numerous there than on
the main island.

Close to the place where we embarked, we

* Elainea ridleyana. f Mus rattus. { Mus musculus.

CATAMARANS 19

noticed a thick-stemmed plant covered all over
with small spikes, and bearing leaves like those
of the geranium. We were warned by our friends
that this plant, when touched, gave a most painful
sting. Moseley mentions that, although he used
the greatest care when securing a specimen, he
got a sting, the results of which he felt for several
days afterwards. We afterwards saw this same
plant in Brazil.

During the second day of our stay on Fernando
de Noronha a steamer, which visits the island
once every month, arrived, bearing mails for the
inhabitants. The advent of the steamer is much
looked forward to, as life on Fernando de Noronha
for a European is dull in the extreme.

As soon as the boat arrived a large raft was
pushed off from the shore and anchored outside
of the surf. The raft resembled in shape a large
table, the legs of which were fixed to a platform
composed of a number of logs lashed together.
A boat was sent off from the steamer loaded with
packages of stores, clothing, letters, and other
things, and these were put on to the raft, from
which they were landed in native catamarans.

The catamarans, which are built on the same
principle as the large raft, are of sufficient size
to carry one person with comfort besides the
native oarsman. They are especially adapted
for landing through surf, and they ride over
the breaking waves with wonderful buoyancy.

20 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

We once landed in a catamaran, and all of us got
ashore with no more than wet feet. In Brazil
we frequently landed through surf in the same
way, though the catamarans there are larger and
are propelled by two natives.

Our time ashore on this second day was limited,
and we did not get very far beyond the settlement.
Major Wilbraham and I walked for some distance
along the shore, and saw the same species of birds
as at Saint Paul's Rocks, but we noticed that
the turnstone appeared to be quite numerous.

There are, I believe, two species of lizards
on the island, but we only saw one of them. This
was Mdbuia punctata, and it seemed to be a most
abundant species on every part of the island.

As we had many other interesting places to see,
our stay on Fernando de Noronha was of necessity
very short, and after two days we set sail for
Bahia, in Brazil. It is probable that in a few
years' time Fernando de Noronha will cease to
exist as a convict settlement. We were informed
that as capital punishment had taken the place of
exportation for life in Brazil, no more convicts
were to be sent there.

CHAPTER III.

ITAPAEICA, BAHIA.

DURING the three cruises of the " Valhalla,"
we made two visits to Bahia. On the first occasion
we landed on 26th December, 1902, Christmas
Day having been spent in sight of the coast of
Brazil, while on the second we dropped anchor
in the Bay of All Saints on 10th December, 1905.

Some six miles from the town lies Itaparica, a
large island inhabited by about 30,000 people,
and it was here that most of our time (a fortnight
on each occasion) was spent. During our first
visit some time was occupied in finding the most
suitable places for landing on this island, and also
in searching for the best spots for collecting birds,
butterflies, and other specimens. What we learnt
on this occasion, however, proved of the greatest
assistance during our second visit, as we were then
able to find the passage through the reef with
little difficulty, and go at once to our old collecting
grounds.

Before describing our doings at Bahia, I must
refer in detail to an important incident which

22 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

occurred on the high seas during our second voyage
thither.

On the 7th December, 1905, when in latitude
7° 14' S., longitude 34° 25' W., and about fourteen
miles from the coast of Brazil near Para, a creature
of most extraordinary form and proportions was
sighted by two of us. At the time we were under
sail only, and were slowly making our way to
Bahia. It was at about 10 o'clock in the morning,
and I was leaning on the rail of the poop deck,
when a large fin suddenly appeared close to the
ship at a distance of about fifty yards. This fin
resembled that of no fish I had previously seen,
and I pointed it out immediately to Mr. E. G. B.
Meade-Waldo, who was on deck with me at the
time, and we watched it together for several
minutes. As we passed slowly by, a long eel-like
neck surmounted by a head, shaped somewhat
like that of a turtle, rose out of the water in front
of the fin. This creature remained in sight for a
few minutes, but we soon drew ahead of it, and it
became lost to view owing to the ripple of the
water. Owing to the fact that we were under sail
at the time, it was not possible to go about and
make a closer inspection, and with great regret
we had to be content with the view we had had of
this remarkable monster.

A full account of it was given at a meeting of
the Zoological Society of London, on 19th June,
1906, and I quote below from the report which was

24 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

printed in the " Proceedings " of that Society
(10th October, 1906, p. 721) :-

" At 10.15 a.m., on Thursday, 7th December,
1905, when in lat. 7° 14' S.,long. 34° 25' W., in a
depth of from 322 to 1,340 fathoms, Meade-Waldo
and I saw a most extraordinary creature about
100 yards from the ship, and moving in the same
direction, but very much slower than we were
going. At first all that we could see was a dorsal
fin, about four feet long, sticking up about two feet
from the water ; this fin was of a brownish-black
colour, and much resembled a gigantic piece of
ribbon-seaweed. Below the water we could in-
distinctly see a very large brownish-black patch,
but could not make out the shape of the creature.
Every now and then the fin entirely disappeared
below the water. Suddenly an eel-like neck,
about six feet long and of the thickness of a man's
thigh, having a head shaped like that of a turtle,
appeared in front of the fin. This head and
neck, which were of the same colour above as the
fin, but of a silvery-white below, lashed up the
water with a curious wriggling movement. After
this it was so far astern of us that we could make
out nothing else.

" During the next fourteen hours we went about
twice, and at about 2 a.m. the following day
(8th December), in lat. 7° 19' S., long. 34° 04' W.,
the first and third mates, Mr. Simmonds and Mr.
Harley, who were on the bridge at the time, saw

THE GREAT SEA-SERPENT 25

a great commotion in the water. At first they
thought it was a rock a- wash about 100 to 150
yards away on the port side, just aft of the bridge,
but they soon made out that it was something
moving and going slightly faster than the ship,
which at that time was doing about 8| knots.
Mr. Simmonds hailed the deck, and one of the crew,
who was on the look-out, saw it too. Although
there was a bright moon at the time, they could
not make out anything of the creature itself,
owing to the amount of wash it was making, but
they say that from the commotion in the water
it looked as if a submarine was going along just
below the surface. They both say most em-
phatically that it was not a whale, and that it was
not blowing, nor have they ever seen anything
like it before. After they had watched it for several
minutes, it ' sounded ' off the port bow, and they
saw no more of it."

This creature was an example, I consider, of
what has been so often reported, for want of a
better name, as the " great sea-serpent." I feel
sure, however, that it was not a reptile that we
saw, but a mammal. It is, of course, impossible
to be certain of this, but the general appearance of
the creature, especially the soft, almost rubber-
like fin, gave one this impression. It is often
said that, if there were such a monster, remains of
it would have been found long ago, but this is
not necessarily so. Supposing the " sea-serpent "

26 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

lives in deep holes, such as there were in the spot
where we saw our " monster," then there would be
little chance of remains being washed ashore, and
the amount of deep-sea dredging that has yet
been done is very small, so that it is not surprising
that no parts of this creature have been obtained
in that way.

That it is not more often reported is not to be
wondered at, when one realizes how often it is
that a ship may sail for days together without
sighting another ship, even in seas where there is
considerable traffic. Also it must be remembered
that such ridicule is generally bestowed on the
reports of sea-monsters, that many persons hesitate
to describe what they have seen. I know myself of
several instances of unknown sea- monsters having
been seen by reliable witnesses, who, to avoid the
inevitable " chaff," would not publicly state their
experiences.

•:•:- 0 # x

The town of Bahia has a striking and picturesque
appearance from the harbour, white houses peep-
ing out here and there from luxuriant vege-
tation. But " distance lends enchantment to
the view," and when on shore the narrow
and filthy streets, and the general untidiness
of the whole place, quickly dispel the illusion of
cleanliness.

During my two visits to Bahia I spent as little
time as possible in the town. A run of some forty

A BRAZILIAN FOREST 27

minutes in our steam launch took us across to
Itaparica, where, after passing through a passage
in the reef, we landed in a small " Berthon "
boat. A great part of the island has been cleared,
and it required over an hour's walk to reach the
nearest patch of virgin forest. The luxuriance
of the vegetation in a Brazilian forest is truly
wonderful ; even at mid-day in the thickest part
of the forest one might imagine it was twilight,
owing to the density of the foliage. Brightly
coloured birds and butterflies are met with at
every step, and it would seem that in every patch
of forest there are different species of birds, while
every hour of the day brings forth new forms
of butterflies.

It was on this island that we first saw hum-
ming-birds, a large blue species* being the most
abundant. We were rather surprised to notice
how frequently these birds perch. I had always
accepted it as a general belief that humming-birds
seldom settled, but were nearly always on the wing.
Since this, my first acquaintance with these ex-
quisite little birds, I have had the good fortune
to meet with examples of many other species of
humming-birds in South America and the West
Indies, and have noted that they are as often at
rest on the trees as hovering round the flowers in
search of food. All the specimens obtained were
carefully examined during the process of skinning,

* Eupetomena macrura.

28 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

and in every instance their gizzards contained the

remains of insects.

During our second visit to Brazil we camped
out for four nights on Itaparica. Our tent was,
pitched near one of the patches of virgin forest
and at no great distance from a small lake, on
the margins of which were numbers of jacanas,*
a bird resembling a water-hen in shape, but
provided with toes of such great length that it
can walk with ease over the floating leaves of the
water-plants.

In the lagoon caimans or alligators were plentiful,
and during the day several were always to be found
either basking on the trunks of trees, which had
fallen near the water, or lying in the water itself,
with only their eyes and nostrils above the
surface.

The near proximity of water to our camp was
convenient, but at nightfall we realized that we
had made a great mistake for the mosquitoes
swarmed in such numbers that sleep was im-
possible. A fire had been lighted previously,
and arranged in such a way that the smoke blew
through the tent, but the mosquitoes swarmed in
notwithstanding, and after spending two nights of
discomfort, we obtained mosquito nets and moved
the tent to a greater distance from the water.
After this we most of us were able to get a couple
of nights' immunity from these pests. Two of

* Parra jacana.

ANIMALS OF THE FOREST 29

my companions, however, went out moth-catching
at night and omitted to fold up their nets before
they started, the consequence being that on their
return the nets were full of mosquitoes, and a few
weeks later they both suffered from a bad attack
of malarial fever.

In spite of mosquitoes by night and grass-ticks
by day, we all agreed that a short stay in the
solitude of a Brazilian forest was a most delightful
experience.

The first two nights there was sufficient moon-
light to make shooting possible, and I spent a great
part of the night in walking about round the camp.
Several foxes were seen, and one of these I shot.
The island abounds with foxes, and there are also
a fair number of wild cats, but although several
of the latter were seen, we did not succeed in
shooting any. Every night I set a number of
traps for small mammals, and, though I managed
to get a few specimens, I found there were several
difficulties to be overcome. In the first place the
bait is almost at once devoured by ants, and this
necessitates a constant series of visits to the traps.
Then again the traps are continually sprung by
animals which are too large for them to hold —
such as opossums and foxes. Eventually I found
that the only way to get any specimens of rats
or mice was to set my traps just before nightfall,
and then visit them at frequent intervals during the
night, and in this way I managed to secure a few.

30 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

On several occasions we saw troops of marmosets
travelling with extraordinary speed from tree to
tree through the forest. From our tent a clearing
of several acres, with here and there a small clump
of mango trees, in which were numerous species
of birds, extended to the lake.

About the camp itself there were always numbers
of vultures of two species.* They showed not the
least fear of us, and would descend almost at our
feet to pick up scraps thrown out to them. The
Brazilians protect these birds, and the penalty
for killing one is a heavy fine. Another very com-
mon bird of prey is the caracara, a pair of which
are to be seen in every patch of forest. We came
across a pair of the pale grey variety of this
species, and a very beautiful sight it was to see
these birds circling round over the tree-tops. In
appearance they reminded one somewhat of a
buzzard when seen from a distance, but the tail is
longer. A large hawk f was also often to be seen
sitting on the dead palm trees, and three were shot
for the collection, while on several occasions a
large eagle was noticed sailing overhead, but never
within gunshot. At night the cries of two kinds
of owls were noticeable, and these proved to be a
small scops-eared owl J and a large wood owl ; the
latter, though seen, was not obtained. Numbers
of night-jars of two species inhabited the forest

* Cathartea aura and C. atratus. f Aaturina nattereri.
J Scops braziliensis.

BIRDS OF THE FOREST 31

and clearings near our tent. The cries of these
birds, quite unlike the loud reeling note made by
the well-known species which we see in England,
were loud liquid calls, which were only uttered,
so far as I could ascertain, when the bird was on
the ground.

During the day a scarlet tanager was continually
seen in the trees and bushes near our tent, and
another bird, most noticeable by reason of its
numbers, was a small swallow.* This little brown-
backed bird invariably appeared in great numbers
directly after a shower of rain.

A shower of rain had a remarkable effect on
the life in the clearing, for immediately after-
wards there appeared immense swarms of flying
ants. As soon as these ants arrived, they were
followed by a great number of birds of all kinds —
flycatchers (Elainea), tanagers, oven-birds, and
woodpeckers appeared, while the little brown-
backed swallow came in great numbers. The ants
were at a disadvantage, and were not safe even
when they had. reached the ground, for here the
woodpeckers followed them and swept them up
with their long tongues.

I imagine that all these birds came from the
neighbouring forests, as previous to the showers
of rain not a bird was to be seen in the clearing.
Another instance of birds appearing at certain
places only when there are insects, was to be

* Stelgidopteryx.

32 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

seen round the lagoon, which a small spine-tailed
swift* visited regularly in the evening when there
were swarms of small flies, while at other times
of the day, when flies were not numerous, not a
single swift was observed there.

It would be tedious to mention individually all
the birds seen during these visits to Itaparica, but
there are two other species to which I must draw
attention — one, because it is one of the most
noticeable of Brazilian birds, and the other, be-
cause of its scarcity, as far as specimens in
museums are concerned.

The first belongs to the family of tyrant-fly-
catchers which is numerously represented in
Brazil. Several species were met with by us,
but by far the most common was Tyrannus
melancholicus — a bird of about the size of a thrush
with a yellow breast, grey back, and a partially
concealed golden-orange crest. It is to be seen
in almost every tree, and is further remarkable
for the monotonous cry which it utters continually.

The other bird to which I would refer is
another member of the family of tyrants. This
bird — Myiarchus pelzelni — is apparently scarce in
collections, though why this should be it is difficult
to say. It was quite common in the mango trees
near our camp, and several were shot and skinned.
Perhaps, however, Itaparica is particularly suited
to its requirements, and it may be rare in other

* Chaetura fumosa.

A SWAMP 33

parts. I think, however, that most likely it is
confused with another bird of the same genus,
viz., M. ferox, which is most abundant in Brazil,
and closely resembles it when seen at a distance.

Every morning, about half an hour before dawn,
we left our tent and walked through the woods
to a large swamp about a mile away, where we
had some fairly good shooting. A large flock
of teal * was sometimes feeding on the mud sur-
rounding a large pool of water, and a few snipe "j"
were bagged, but, unlike snipe in general, they
offered the easiest of shots. They behaved much
like the jack snipe, rarely flying more than a few
yards at a time, and always allowing of a close
approach. The most numerous birds were, how-
ever, the jacanas, which were in enormous numbers,
and as soon as we appeared on the spot they rose
in large flocks and circled round us high overhead.

Many delightful hours in the early morning were
spent in this way among the numerous different
forms of bird and insect life. Daybreak in the
tropics is undoubtedly the best time out of the
twenty-four hours, for then the air is cool and in-
vigorating— a great contrast to the rest of the day,
when the heat becomes almost unbearable. The
hottest part of the morning we usually spent in
the thick forest, where, under the deep shade of
the trees, it was possible to collect specimens
without feeling the effects of the heat.

* Nettion braziliensis. f Gallinago delicata.

34 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

After some experience I have found that the
best, in fact the only, time to do really good work
in the way of collecting in the tropics, is a few hours
after daybreak, and again some two hours before
dark. Only then can one work with comfort,
but, what is more important, the birds at these
times appear to be more numerous and more
easily approached. Towards mid-day every sign
of animal life seems to disappear, and there is no
doubt that at that hour mammals and birds hide
away in the comparative cool of the thickest part
of the forest.

Altogether these few days in camp on Itaparica
proved to be most interesting, and although we
suffered to a great extent from mosquitoes and
grass-ticks, from the latter especially, we were well
pleased with our results.

The ticks were a source of great annoyance,
and, in spite of all we could do to prevent them,
they swarmed on our clothing and buried them-
selves in our skins. When once fixed in the skin
it is a very difficult matter to remove them, as
they quickly bury their heads, and if any force
is used in removing them, their heads break off
and remain in the flesh, where they often cause a
bad wound.

The part of the island in which we were camped
did not appear to be thickly populated. Along
the shore there were a number of small houses
tenanted mostly by fishermen, but in one or two

FETES AT BAHIA 35

of the larger of these houses there were a few of
the better-class Brazilians. These were traders
from Bahia, who rent these houses for the summer,
and one of them, who procured porters for us,
told us that he took a house on the island every
year during the hot weather, as it was then far
more healthy than at Bahia.

Occasionally a case of "beri-beri" makes its
appearance among the natives in Bahia. All
sufferers from this dreadful disease are at once
sent across to Itaparica, and we were informed
that they frequently recover when this is done,
but if they remain in Bahia they usually die.

The population of Bahia and the surrounding
country is of all nationalities, though the greater
number appear to be negroes.

All these people are of the Roman Catholic
religion, and they celebrate Saints' days by a
great display of fireworks. During the two visits
of the "Valhalla" there were a number of these
displays, and the continual banging of crackers
at all hours of the day and night was infinitely
less amusing to us than to the Brazilians.

On the occasion of our first visit, a great pro-
cession of boats filled with priest and choristers
started from the shore, and visited most of the ships
in the harbour. When they arrived at a Brazilian
ship they fired off a number of crackers which they
had with them, and one of these ships, a Brazilian
man-of-war, replied with a salute of guns. On

36 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
every Saint's day a procession takes place,
generally on land, but on special occasions, as on
this one, which was the day after Christmas Day,
the ships in the harbour are visited.

SOUTH TRINIDAD ISLAND, NEAR THE LANDING PLACE.

f36

CHAPTER IV.

SOUTH TRINIDAD.

AT 6 o'clock on the morning of the 3rd January,
1905, the island of South Trinidad was sighted.

This island is situated in the South Atlantic
Ocean off the coast of Brazil, lat. 20° 23' S.,
long. 29° 43' W. It is volcanic, and of the same
formation as the coast of Rio de Janeiro.

South Trinidad had been visited by naturalists
three times previously. In 1868 the Italian
corvette "Magenta" came to the island, and two
species of petrels were obtained and described as
new to science by Dr. Giglioli.*

The second expedition was made in August,
1875, by Lord Crawford (then Lord Lindsay),
who, when on the way to Mauritius to observe the
transit of Venus, landed at South Trinidad and
made a small collection of birds. |

Thirdly, on 13th September, 1901, the naturalists
of the " Discovery," when bound for the Antarctic
regions, landed there and made a collection.

* (Estrelata arminjoniana and (E. trinitatis. " Ibis," 1869, pp. 62-66.
f " Proceedings Zoological Society," March 2nd, 1880, p. 161.

E

38 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Amongst the birds obtained by the last-named
expedition were several specimens of a petrel,
which Dr. Bowdler Sharpe described as a new
species. *

As we gradually drew near to the island, the
" Ninepin," a huge upright column of rock, came
into view. This rock is several hundred feet in
height, and in shape is much like an enormous
tree-trunk. It was at one time undoubtedly of a
much larger diameter than now, long exposure to
the weather having worn its surface away to such
an extent that only the hard central core remains
at the present time.

When we were within a mile or two of the island,
we could see that the greater part of it was covered
with grass, while against the skyline at the extreme
summit a mass of trees could be distinguished.
Extending from the summit to the base were many
fissures, which formed deep valleys, and these
were thickly overgrown with tree-ferns.

Sea-birds, chiefly large petrels, appeared in
numbers, and circled round the ship, while a good
many gannets settled in the rigging.

A strong northerly gale was blowing, and Captain
Caws had little hopes of the sea being smooth

* (Eatrelata Wilsoni Sharpe. " Bulletin Brit. Orn. Club," XII., p. 49
(February, 1902)

This bird has, however, since been found to be identical with (Estrelata

arminjoniana, Giglioli and Salvadori c/. Godman, "Monograph of

Petrels," pp. 229-231. Therefore there are but two species of petrels

inhabiting South Trinidad.

TREE-FERNS ON SOUTH TRINIDAD ISLAND. ] [39

LANDING ON SOUTH TRINIDAD 39

enough to lower a boat. As we drew under the
lee of the island, however, the sea proved perfectly
calm, and but little surf was beating on the
shore.

A large amount of treasure hidden in former
days by pirates is said to be buried on South
Trinidad, and Mr. E. F. Knight visited the island
on two occasions for the purpose of searching for it.

We kept a careful look-out for the " Cascade "
and the " Pier," mentioned by Mr. Knight in his
" Cruiseof the 'Alert.'" The "Cascade" was soon
sighted, and proved to be a small trickle of water
which had its source among the groves of tree-ferns
near the summit of the island, and ran down
a deep valley into the sea at a point about 200
yards from the jutting promontory of black rock
which has been named so aptly the " Pier."

A boat having been lowered we started for the
shore. On getting near in we met with several
large turtles, which were swimming about close
to the rocks. These turtles visit South Trinidad
for the purpose of depositing their eggs, and during
our two days' visit we saw many of them swimming
about, but none were on the beach, and it is probable
that we were too early in the year to find their
eggs.

The boat was backed up to the natural " pier,"
and with one of the seamen I scrambled on to the
rocks. At first it seemed doubtful whether the
" pier " was connected with the shore, but we soon

E2

40 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

found that it was not difficult to climb over the
huge boulders forming the " pier," and thus reach
the strip of sand which fringes this part of the
island.

Directly I had landed I was mobbed by a
screaming crowd of white terns and noddies, which
rose from their nesting-places on the rocks. So
close to me did these birds fly, that I was able to
touch them with the barrels of my gun.

Between the " Cascade " and " Pier ' the
coastline is slightly indented and fringed with
a narrow strip of sand. Beyond the sand a mass
of rocks had to be climbed before we could reach
a plateau, which could be seen about 200 feet from
the water's edge. After passing the rocky base
of the hill, we found the rest of the way com-
paratively easy. The ground, which was covered
with long wiry grass, was very treacherous, and
slid away underfoot at every step.

Half-way up the slope the carpenter of the ship
planted a board on which " Valhalla " was carved.
This board was very thick and heavy, and will
probably last for many years. We found the
remains of several such boards on the island, but
the names they originally bore were all illegible.
We found also some letters painted in white on
a huge rock on the plateau, but owing to long
exposure to the weather these were also illegible.

This rock was covered with noddy terns and
their eggs. The birds, which were of the same

•i*

NODDY TERN AT THE NEST, SOUTH TRINIDAD ISLAND.

VEGETATION OF THE ISLAND 41

species as the large noddy met with on Saint
Paul's Rocks, were very tame, and several photo-
graphs of them were taken at close quarters.

On the plateau are great numbers of fallen trees,
apparently of a species of acacia, which from all
appearances have been dead for many years,
though why they died it is impossible to say.
They show no signs of having been destroyed
by fire. The whole of the island is covered with
these dead trees ; some standing with their bare
branches spread out as in life, and others lying
in all positions. In some places so thickly is the
ground strewn with them that it is difficult to force
one's way through. When South Trinidad was
first discovered it was thickly wooded, but no
record seems forthcoming as to when and why
the trees died. It may have been that some
volcanic disturbance destroyed all the vegetation,
but this seems unlikely, because on the summit of
the island there flourish trees and tree-ferns,
which appear to be of a great age.

At one time a number of goats inhabited the
island, but for many years these have disappeared,
though the reason for this is also unknown. There
is at the present time sufficient green food to
support any number of goats, for, besides the grass,
which covers the greater part, there are quantities
of beans growing in masses on the fallen trees on
the windward side.

As soon as we began to ascend to the plateau

42 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

numbers of petrels appeared flying overhead ;
these were of two species, the most numerous
being the (Estrelata arminjoniana. About the
size of a pigeon, this bird has a dark slate-
coloured back and head, with white, or in some
individuals grey, underparts. These birds were
just commencing to breed in the holes and crannies
in the rocks. The other petrel ((Estrelata trini-
tatis), which is dark brown all over, with black
legs and feet, was less numerous, but higher up the
ravine a few were tending their well-grown young,
which were sitting in hollows in the rocks and under
overhanging ledges. The young birds were covered
with long thick brownish-grey down, and resembled
big " powder-puffs." They were extremely fat,
and when handled they ejected a greenish fluid
from their tube-like nostrils. The old birds
circled overhead in great numbers and screamed
at us angrily.

Occasionally a long bubbling note, not unlike
the call of a female cuckoo, was heard. This note
was only uttered by the Arminjon's petrels. The
plumage of the birds of this species showed two
distinct varieties or " phases." The majority
had pure white breasts, but many others had these
parts of a smoky-grey colour : these may have
been younger birds. I caught many pairs of
these petrels at their nesting-places, and in
every case the birds had white breasts, and
although I handled a good many petrels (a hundred

'5

§1

li

h-" Q

P •<

LAND-CRABS 43

at least) on South Trinidad, I never found a light-
breasted bird in company with a dark-breasted
one. It may well be, therefore, that the dark-
breasted ones are birds not fully adult. All these
petrels, whether white or grey-breasted, had the
legs and the bases of the toes flesh-coloured,
the rest of the feet and webs black.

Very few eggs of these petrels were found.
Arminjon's petrels had barely begun to lay, while
the eggs of the other species had almost all hatched
out. The eggs of the former petrel which we
found were pure white, and about the size of a
small hen's egg.

After collecting a number of these petrels for
specimens, I climbed higher up the ravine. It
was a very warm and tiring business. The water
had worn the rocky bed until it had formed a
deep valley. In some places in the bed of the
stream there was a sheer drop of twelve or fourteen
feet from one rock to another. Followed by the
ship's carpenter I went laboriously on, carefully
searching every nook and cranny for the nests
of petrels. In some places we found deep caves,
hollowed out by the stream probably during heavy
rainfalls. These caves were dripping with moisture
and were full of land-crabs, which scuttled away
at our approach, their legs making a peculiar
rattling noise on the rocky floor. They also made
a continuous snapping sound with their pincers,
which they waved about in a threatening manner.

44 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

The land-crabs of Trinidad have been described
as ferocious and of huge size ; but all those we
saw were small and most inoffensive, their one idea
being to hurry away from us and to hide in the
nearest available hole. They were all of a pale
saffron colour, and the largest we were able to
catch was not more than four inches across the
carapace.

The higher up the ravine we climbed the more
abundant the dead trees became. In all of them,
as well as on the rocks which were scattered about
on the sides of the valley, white terns were nesting
in great numbers. I knocked over several with a
stick, and at once noticed that they belonged to a
different species to those obtained in the South
Pacific during our first voyage. The bill of these
Trinidad birds was wholly black, while that of
the Pacific and Indian Ocean birds has a base of
a hyacinth-blue colour. There are also other less
noticeable differences between the white terns of
South Trinidad and those of the Pacific Ocean.

On our return to England, and after a thorough
examination and comparison, I had the pleasure
of describing as a new species this lovely little
tern of South Trinidad, and naming it after Lord
Crawford (Oygis crawfordi).* There was only one
other specimen of this bird from South Trinidad
in the British Museum, and this example had been
collected by Lord Crawford in 1875 during his

* "Bulletin Brit. Orn. Club," XVL, p. 102.

LORD CRAWFORD'S TERN 45

first visit to the island. This skin had remained
undescribed, owing to the fact that the bills of
both forms become totally black in the dried
skins, the light blue of the Pacific and Indian
Ocean birds turning black within two days after
the bird has been skinned.

Gygis crawfordi lays a single egg, either on a
narrow ledge of rock or else on the branch of a
dead tree. No nest is made, the egg being laid
in a cleft or in a small hollow, and some of those
we found were placed in such a shallow depression
on the bare branch of some dead tree that a slight
push was sufficient to dislodge them.

The way these eggs are balanced is extraordinary
but the tenacious hold of the young bird in a
similarly insecure position is perhaps more aston-
ishing. Several times I drove a tern suddenly
from its nest for the purpose of seeing if the young
bird could retain its position. Although the old
bird in every case left the nest in such a hurry as
to upset the balance of the young one, the latter
clung on and pulled itself back in a few seconds
by means of its sharp claws and bill.

It was well for the birds that they could retain
their hold so cleverly, for the ground underneath
the trees was covered with land-crabs, which would
have quickly devoured any unfortunate young
bird falling from its nest.

During the whole of the time we spent amongst
the colonies of these white terns we were continually

46 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

mobbed by the old birds, which tried to divert our
attention from the eggs and young. They were not
aggressive in any way, but fluttered within a few
inches of our faces, uttering all the while a soft
croak. On several occasions they settled on our
hats, so fearless were they, or was it in ignorance
of the nature of man ?

I stopped opposite a fallen tree, on which a pair
were nesting, for the purpose of photographing
them and their nest. The birds sat quite still
while I put up my half-plate tripod camera,
and were not at all alarmed at the flapping
focussing cloth. All seemed easy, but before I
could expose a plate I was surrounded by a flutter-
ing, croaking swarm of birds, and I had to keep
driving them off as they hovered in front of my
camera.

The number of these birds on South Trinidad
is incalculable. The entire plumage is of an ivory
whiteness, and they flash in the sunlight like
flakes of snow. From the sea-shore to the extreme
summit of the island they were sitting in swarms
on every rock and dead tree, while the air seemed
full of them. After leaving Trinidad, too, while
steaming southward, we passed flock after flock.

The eggs are most handsome. About the size
of a bantam's, and large for the bird, they are
heavily blotched and streaked with yellowish olive-
brown on a somewhat lighter ground colour.

We found young birds of all ages. They are

H a

TAMENESS OF THE BIRDS 47
covered with a grey down at first, but older birds
have their white feathers suffused with a dirty
yellow colour. On leaving the nest they have
black quills to the wings and tail-feathers, but the
plumage of the adult is entirely white, with the
exception of a narrow ring of black feathers en-
circling the eye. The bill, as I have already noted,
is jet black, while the feet are pale sea-blue, the
webs joining the toes being milky white. Both
old and young have the middle toe furnished
with a strong and sharp claw, which is specially
useful to the young bird when it is in danger of
falling from the nesting-place.

Several pairs of gannets,* a smaller bird than
our well-known solan goose, but somewhat simi-
larly coloured when adult, were found sitting
on their nests or tending their young. The nests
were in every case a collection of sticks placed
in a suitable position on the fallen trees. We found
no eggs, but the young were in all stages of growth.
The newly-hatched bird is covered with pure
white down, but it has a black bill, and a patch of
bare black skin surrounding the eyes and extend-
ing down the neck under the chin. The down
on the forehead stands erect, and gives the bird
a most comical appearance.

Photographs were obtained of these birds
without any difficulty, and most of the old gannets
took no notice at all of our presence. In fact,

* Sula piscator.

48 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

one old bird, which was sitting by a well-grown
youngster, took so little interest in our proceedings
that we found it necessary to wake it up in order
to take its portrait.

High overhead a number of frigate birds were
circling. Every now and again one would plunge
downwards and chase a gannet which, slowly
flapping up from the sea, was bearing a mouthful
of food to its young on the hillside.

These frigate birds, of which there are two
species on South Trinidad, get their food chiefly
by robbing the gannets. Woe betide the gannet,
as it slowly wends its way to its nest and young,
if it is spied by a frigate bird. The robber at once
hurls itself on its victim, and the gannet, terrified
at the attack of a bird so much larger than
itself, drops from its mouth and throat all the
fish which it has been at such pains to catch.
The frigate bird then swoops down and, catching
up the fallen fish before it reaches the ground
or sea, makes off and swallows the stolen food at
leisure.

Frigate birds, however, do not always rely on
this method of getting a meal. I have frequently
seen them catching fish for themselves, and
plunging into the water somewhat after the manner
of a tern. I have also seen them feeding on the
remains of a shark which had been killed and
thrown overboard.

The commoner of the two frigate birds on South

FRIGATE BIRDS 49

Trinidad is the greater frigate,* a bird of large
size, larger than the common kite, and with a long
forked tail. The adult male is a glossy greenish
black, the feathers are of a lanceolate shape, and
under the chin is a large red bag, to which I
alluded in a former chapter. The bill is long and
sharp, and the upper mandible ends with a large
curved hook, a most formidable weapon of offence
and defence. The females and young have no
bag on the throat, and have the underparts white.

The other species was the lesser frigate,! which
resembles the larger except for its much smaller
dimensions. We obtained one specimen, and
this was shot from the deck of the yacht by Mr.
Lindsay. The lesser frigate bird has only once
previously been obtained in the Atlantic. This
was on the occasion of the visit of the " Dis-
covery " to South Trinidad, in September, 1901.
It is, however, a common bird in the Pacific and
Indian Oceans.

Apparently neither of these frigate birds was
nesting on South Trinidad during our visit, but they
may breed on the neighbouring islets of Martin
Vas, in the immediate vicinity of which we found
them numerous.

My great hope was that there might be a land-
bird on South Trinidad, because all the other
South Atlantic islands, with, of course, the excep-
tion of Saint Paul's Rocks, on which there are no

* Fregata aquila. f F. arid.

50 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

trees or vegetation of any kind, have their peculiar
forms of land-birds. During the first day we were
ashore, I kept to the " Cascade," knowing that
there was no time to search thoroughly amongst
the tree-ferns and other vegetation at the summit
of the island. I wished, moreover, to make as
complete a collection as possible of the sea-birds,
and especially of the petrels peculiar to the
islands. In this I was successful, as specimens of
all the birds previously known from South Trinidad,
as well as of one species — the noddy tern — new to
its avifauna, were collected during that afternoon.

During the following night we steamed slowly
away, and at daylight went about, returning to
our former landing place. At 9 o'clock we were
ashore again, and at once climbed to the plateau.
Mr. Meade- Waldo and I then set off to climb
to the summit. We each took a sailor with us to
carry our lunch, cameras, and so on, but soon after
we had begun the ascent of the " Cascade," one
of the sailors gave out, and we had to leave him
to return to the ship. After this we had to carry
our own cameras, and soon found that these,
together with collecting gun, butterfly net, and
other things, considerably retarded our progress.

After leaving the plateau we decided that our
best way to reach the tree-ferns was to follow
the " Cascade " as much as possible, and then
climb round a huge crown-shaped rock, which
towered above us. Passing up the rocky bed of

THE l' CROWN" BOCK, SOUTH TRINIDAD ISLAND.

[50

WE CLIMB TO THE SUMMIT 51

the " Cascade," which I had explored the previous
day, we found that beyond it the bed of the stream
was somewhat more open. Masses of ferns were
growing close to the water, and in these my com-
panion caught a number of moths. The sides of
the valley were here very steep and covered with
grass, but we soon discovered that the ground was
remarkably brittle.

We kept to the bed of the stream until the
" Crown " rock was reached. The stream here
was full of fallen trees, every one of them tenanted
by a pair or more of white terns. The trees were
lying at all angles, several of them completely
blocked our passage, while the sides of the valley
were literally covered with dead branches, which
lay partly or wholly overgrown by the ferns and
grass, so that our progress was extremely slow
and tedious. Every now and again a moth
fluttered out from under our feet, and many were
captured.

A little further on the bed of the stream was dry
and full of boulders of all sizes, round which we
had to make a wide detour. At last we reached
the " Crown " rock, where a halt was made for
luncheon.

After a too short half -hour's rest we started
our climb again, and soon found that we still had
the most difficult part of our journey in front,
for after we had skirted the " Crown " rock we
came to a narrow ridge of crumbling ground,

52 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

covered with grass but giving no safe foothold.
On each side of us the ground sloped down pre-
cipitously for several hundred feet, and a slip
would have been disastrous. For some distance
we proceeded in slow fashion, planting our feet
firmly in the crumbling earth, not daring to hold
on by the long grass, which would have torn
away at once, till at length a broader stretch of
land opened in front of us. The ground was still
very brittle, but it offered a good foothold. In
front of us, at a distance of a few hundred feet,
we could see the top of the island covered with
low bushes resembling lauristinus, amongst which
was a clump of trees bearing shining leaves. In
these trees numbers of gannets were sitting on
their nests, and they seemed to be considerably
astonished at seeing us approaching their home.
We quickly scrambled to the trees, and a few
minutes later the summit of South Trinidad was
gained.

I shall never forget the magnificent view which
now lay revealed. Behind us was the " Cascade,"
on each side deep valleys filled with tree-ferns,
while to our front the whole of the windward side
of the island was exposed to view. Immediately
below a precipice fell sheer down for several
hundreds of feet, and then the land gradually
sloped away to the green undulating country
which borders the windward side of South
Trinidad. In the distance, and close to the water's

A SPLENDID VIEW 53

edge, the remains of a Portuguese convict
settlement was to be seen. There appeared to be
little of it standing, but the foundations of the
houses, deserted for many years past, could be
clearly distinguished. To our immediate right
was a peak of about the same height as that upon
which we were standing. The ground had slipped
away from it to such an extent that all vegetation
had been destroyed, and only the deep red-coloured
earth was to be seen. Further to the right
towered the " Sugarloaf," boldly outlined against
the deep blue sea. It was full of crannies and
ledges, in which petrels were nesting in vast
numbers. As soon as we appeared above the sky-
line these birds left their nests and flew backwards
and forwards in immense and continually in-
creasing numbers, until the air was full of a
screaming multitude of birds. Below, above and
on all sides of us these birds wheeled and shrieked,
until the clamour became almost deafening.

Beyond the " Sugarloaf " we could see " Noah's
Ark," a mass of rock rising straight up from the
sea, and shaped like the familiar toy so dear to
children. This rock was likewise covered with
petrels, and they also joined the tumult. At the
foot of " Noah's Ark " the pirate's treasure is
supposed to be buried. Whether there is really
any treasure is doubtful, but if there is, it is
probable that it will never be found, as, owing to

the brittle character of the soil, the land is con-

F

54 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

tirmally slipping, so that by this time the treasure
must be buried deep, beyond all hope of recovery.

Far away and almost on the horizon the rocky
islets of Martin Vas, on which no one is yet known
to have landed, were discernible.

It was next to impossible to make our way
down to the windward side of the island ;
moreover, it was getting late in the afternoon,
so we decided that the best thing to do was to
descend to the " Pier " by the same way we had
come. But instead of taking the " Cascade "
valley, we begun to descend by another deep
valley close to it. The surface of the ground
here was even more brittle than in the " Cascade "
valley, and the descent was very steep. My
companion and a sailor started first and safely
reached the first of the tree-ferns. Seeing that
they were safely down I started, but the ground
was now considerably broken up by their feet,
and I found that it was extremely difficult to get
a foothold in the powdery red-coloured earth,
which slipped away from under me like sand.
Suddenly, and without any warning, the whole of
the ground gave way, and, enveloped in a cloud of
choking dust, I felt myself rushing down the
incline, and, before I could realize what had
happened, I was standing, or rather sitting, close
to my companions. My first thought was for the
camera and slides which, together with my gun,
had been slung on my back. Most fortunately

A VALLEY OF TREE-FERNS 55

these were uninjured, and, as I afterwards found,
none of the plates had suffered in any way,
although the camera-case was full of dust.

After this the way became a little easier. The
bed of the valley was dry, but it had evidently
been hollowed out by water, for the rocks showed
considerable wear from trickling water. Possibly
it is only in the rainy season that there is any
water in this valley, for at the time of our visit
the rocks were covered with a thick tangle of grass.
Amongst the grass and climbing over some of the
fallen trees, a few of which were to be seen in this
valley, was a species of climbing bean. This bean
was in flower and is doubtless the same as that
mentioned by Mr. Knight as growing thickly on
the windward side of the island.

Mention may here be made of some mice which
we saw in considerable numbers both in this
and in the " Cascade " valley — to what species
they belonged we were unable to determine.
They were small and of a greyish colour. We
both thought that they looked like a small vole,
but they were extremely quick in their movements,
and the grass was so thick and high that we were
unable to shoot any specimens.

The sides of this valley were thickly grown
with tree-ferns, and to these we now turned our
attention. The ferns were from twelve to twenty-
five feet in height. Their stems were quite bare,
but at the top a number of fern-like fronds grew

F2

56 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

at right-angles to the stem. The tree-ferns on
South Trinidad grow very close together, and
owing to this fact and to the ground being strewn
with boulders of all sizes, over which the grass
had sprung up in great luxuriance, walking through
a forest of these ferns was a tedious business.

Every now and again I was thrown into a state
of excitement on hearing a shrill twittering sound
just above my head. Visions of a land-bird were
always in my mind, but time after time I was
disappointed to find that the twitterings were
caused by white terns which were nesting on the
tops of the decaying trunks of dead tree-ferns.
Finally we came to the reluctant conclusion that
there is no land-bird of any kind on South
Trinidad. We had carefully searched the tallest
trees on the summit, and there, as in the tree-
ferns, we found no signs of such a bird.

On the trunk of one of the tree-ferns, Mr. Meade-
Waldo found an orchid, which he sent home to
England, but apart from this and the bean there
was no other plant in this valley which we had
not found in that of the " Cascade."

Instead of taking us down to the shore, as we
had fully expected, we found that the valley was
a mere cul-de-sac, and ended with a steep
precipice of several hundreds of feet in height.

It was by this time nearly four o'clock in the
afternoon, and we had arranged to be at the
landing place at five, and here we were nearly
two thousand feet above the sea, and the yacht

A DIFFICULT CLIMB 57

looking a mere speck far below us. It was
necessary, therefore, to get out of the valley in
which we were trapped as quickly as possible.
To climb the slide we came down was an impos-
sibility, my fall earlier in the afternoon having
completely shut that way off from us. To descend
from where we were was also an impossibility
owing to the precipice. The only way open to us
was to force our way through the tree-ferns and gain
the ridge and climb up that to the gannets' nests.

We all three felt that we had had enough
climbing. Water there was none ; all our drink
had been consumed earlier in the afternoon.
However, we had to get out somehow, and the
sooner the better ; so we started off, and at length
reached the ridge up which we slowly made our
way. Arrived at the top we started for the
" Cascade " valley, and followed the same track
as that we had ascended some hours previously.

Going down this track was much more un-
pleasant than coming up. On our right was a
precipice, while the outlook on our left was
scarcely less formidable, for in that direction the
ground fell away almost sheer for at least three
hundred feet. Our path was a narrow ridge,
just wide enough to give a foothold, and that a
most insecure one. At length, however, we reached
the " Crown " rock, and skirting it again we came
in sight of the beginning of the " Cascade," the
clear water of which was so tempting that the
seaman and I resolved to climb down to it. Never

58 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

was water more refreshing, and not even the
presence of vast numbers of land-crabs was suffi-
cient to deter us from a long and much-needed
drink. Then, feeling greatly refreshed, we fol-
lowed the course of the " Cascade," and little by
little made our way down towards the shore.

In many places the " Cascade " formed waterfalls
as much as ten or twelve feet in height, and these
falls were not easy to negotiate. " Jack," however,
produced a piece of rope, and so we were able to
lower ourselves down from rock to rock, and
finally reached the shore without mishap.

The sailor who accompanied us on this, and
afterwards on many excursions of this kind, was
the coxswain of the steam launch, and volunteered
to carry our extra baggage, such as cameras and
so on. Throughout this voyage he gave his
services in this way, and to his untiring persever-
ance and willingness we are greatly indebted.

We reached the " Pier " about six o'clock in
the evening, and for my part I was most thankful
to get into the boat and rest. Notwithstanding
the hard work, however, I had never spent a more
delightful or interesting time.

During the three voyages that it has been my
good fortune to make in the " Valhalla " with
Lord Crawford, many interesting and beautiful
islands were visited, but to my mind none of these
places possesses the charm of this small unin-
habited spot in the South Atlantic.

CHAPTER V.

MARTIN VAS.

THE ship was hove to off South Trinidad during
the following night, and early next morning we
steamed slowly towards the rocky islets of Martin
Vas.

Owing to the insufficient manner in which the
sea surrounding this group of islands has been
charted, it was necessary to proceed very
cautiously. Suddenly the water became very
shallow, and, although we were then about two
miles away from the nearest islet, it was necessary
to go full speed astern. While we were backing
in this way a large rock, covered by some six
feet of water, was seen within a few yards of the
ship. This rock is not marked on the chart, and
we thus had a very narrow escape from an enforced
residence on South Trinidad.

At length a passage was found for the ship,
and we drew in to within about half a mile of the
main islet. We then set out in boats and rowed
towards the shore.

Martin Vas consists of four rocks, the two

60 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

largest being connected together by a narrow
strip of land which is only noticeable at low
water.

It does not seem to have been previously
mentioned that when approached from the south-
east, three of these islets bear a striking resemblance
to the outline of South Trinidad, though on a
much smaller scale. The largest of them is about
300 feet in height, and its sides are precipitous ;
but the summit appears to form a plateau. If
the ground of this island is as brittle as that of
South Trinidad, I should imagine that it would be
nearly impossible to climb to the plateau. No
one, however, has, so far as I can ascertain, landed
on Martin Vas.

It has been said that the heavy surf makes it
impossible to land. At the time of our visit,
however, the weather was exceptionally fine
and the sea quite smooth, and had we been able
to spare the time, we could without any doubt
have got ashore on the largest of the islets.

As we approached numbers of the greater
frigate bird appeared and circled overhead. Many
sooty terns* also came off from the main islet,
and these in company with the common noddy
seemed to be the commonest birds inhabiting the
group. A few Arminjon's and Trinidad petrels
were observed, but all these were flying over the
sea, either in the direction of, or away from,

* Sterna fuliginosa*

BIRDS ROUND THE ISLETS 61
Trinidad. None of them seemed to be nesting
on Martin Vas.

An example of the smaller noddy tern* was
seen amongst the common noddy and sooty terns,
and a large white-breasted shearwater")" passed
my boat. Several pairs of gannets, of the same
species as that found on South Trinidad, were also
seen, but they did not appear to have nests on
Martin Vas.

The sooty tern does not seem to have been
recorded from Martin Vas or South Trinidad
before, though it probably is quite common there.
To authenticate our identification a specimen was
obtained, and this was the only bird we shot during
the morning.

I do not think that the islets of Martin Vas
are inhabited by any birds of great interest, and
probably South Trinidad offers more suitable
nesting-places.

The sea round these islets is inhabited by
numerous sharks, almost as many being seen here
as at Saint Paul's Rocks. Many were caught from
the ship while we were away in the boats, but
they were not of any great size, their average
length being about six feet.

Shortly after mid-day we returned to the yacht,
which at once got under steam and left for
Tristan da Cunha.

During the two days spent on South Trinidad

* M icranoua leucocapillus. f Puffinus grama ?

62 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

and Martin Vas a large collection of birds was made.
They were kept in the refrigerator until I could
finish skinning them, a task which occupied several
days.

CHAPTER VI.

TRISTAN DA CUNHA.

OWING to the very fine weather and light winds
the passage from Trinidad and Martin Vas to
Tristan da Cunha occupied twelve days.

Tristan da Cunha is the largest of a group of
three islands, all of which are within sight of one
another ; but Nightingale Island and Inaccessible
Island, the other two of the group, are insignificant
in size and appearance compared with Tristan da
Cunha, the peak of which rises over 8,000 feet
above the sea.

Gough Island, which is situated about two
hundred miles to the south and slightly east of
Tristan da Cunha, should probably be included
in this group, owing to its somewhat similar
avifauna.

A large number of sea-birds, including several
species of albatroses, as well as petrels, breed on
Tristan da Cunha and the two smaller islands in
the immediate neighbourhood.

Long before the islands were sighted sea-birds
became very numerous. Two species of petrels

64 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

which we saw at no great distance from Tristan
da Cunha deserve special mention, because up
to the present time no one has succeeded in dis-
covering where they breed.

One of these is the great shearwater,* a well-
known visitor to British seas, and I think the only
" British " bird whose eggs are now unknown.
These birds were seen in some abundance in the
neighbourhood of these islands, and in nearly every
case there were two individuals, doubtless male
and female, together. A few weeks later I ex-
amined a skin of the great shearwater in the Cape
Town Museum, which had been caught on Inac-
cessible Island, and there would seem to be little
doubt that this bird breeds on one of these three
islands.

The other petrel which was encountered, not
only before we reached Tristan da Cunha but also
between that island and the Cape of Good Hope,
was CEstrelata incerta, of which very few specimens
have ever been obtained. It is about the size
of a large pigeon, and of a dull brown on the back
with yellowish-brown, almost golden, neck, and
white underparts. The three skins in the British
Museum were all obtained in the South Atlantic
near the Cape of Good Hope, and possibly this
bird also nests on one of these three islands.

As the yacht gradually drew nearer to the
islands the number of albatroses increased. The

* Puffinus gravis.

A MAIL FOR THE ISLANDERS 65

yellow-nosed albatros* was by far the commonest
of the three species seen here. This bird somewhat
resembles a very large black-backed gull, the head,
however, is washed with smoky-grey, and a bright
yellowish-orange streak extends along the whole
length of the bill. The great albatrosf was in
smaller numbers, and most of them left the vicinity
of the ship when within a few miles of the island.
Every now and then a sooty albatros, J easily
recognisable by its sooty-brown colour, was
observed.

The people on shore soon sighted the ship,
and, when we were within a mile of the settlement,
two boats put out, and a few minutes later the
islanders scrambled aboard.

Lord Crawford had brought a mail from England
and some time was spent in sorting the various
letters and packages. By the time this was
finished it was too late to go on shore that day,
and all we could do was to spend an hour in a
boat between the ship and the island.

I had a talk with several of the islanders about
the birds, and especially the three species of land-
birds, which have been described from Tristan
da Cunha. I succeeded in getting a certain
amount of information, but how much of it was
correct I cannot say.

I was told that there is now only one land-bird.
This is a thrush called Nesochicla eremita, which

* Diomedea chlororhyncha. f •£*• exulans. J D. fuliginosa.

66 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

in colour and size much resembles a young black-
bird in nestling plumage. The Tristan finch,*
about the size of a sparrow and of a greenish colour,
appears to be extinct on Tristan da Cunha, though
we were told that it is still common on Inaccessible
Island. Tristan da Cunha is overrun with rats,
and they are probably responsible for the ex-
tinction of the finch.

I also made enquiries as to whether the flight-
less moorhen| still existed on the Main Island,
but none of the islanders had any knowledge of
the bird. They, however, told me that a bird
like a " little black chicken " with long legs is
quite common on Inaccessible. There is little
doubt that this rail, of which I believe no specimens
have yet been obtained, is a different species to
that which was formerly found on Tristan da
Cunha. Moseley states J that the rail of Inacces-
sible Island was described to him by two men
who had been living on that island as " much
smaller " than Porphyriornis nesiotis, and differing
from it in " having finer legs and a longer beak."

The name " Inaccessible," it should be mentioned,
was given to the island on account of the inac-
cessibility of its peak. The island itself, being
fringed with a thick growth of kelp weed, is not
difficult to land upon, as the weed prevents the
surf from breaking on the shore.

* Nesospiza acunhae. f Porphyriornis nesiotis.

J "Notes by a Naturalist," 1892, p. 105.

A DIVING PETREL 67

We rowed to within half a mile of the shore of
Tristan da Cunha, near the settlement. The sea
was perfectly smooth, and had it been earlier in
the afternoon we should have landed. The settle-
ment is composed of about sixteen stone houses,
and is situated at the foot of the peaks where the
grass-covered ground slopes gradually down to
the sea. Great numbers of cattle were feeding
on this grass land. The islanders sell them to
passing ships, and we ordered two bullocks, but
owing to the stormy weather which set in that
night we were unable to hold any further com-
munication with the shore.

During the evening I made a small collection
of sea-birds. Two fine examples of the yellow-
nosed albatros were shot, also some terns.* The
latter, which are much like our common tern,
were very numerous, and, judging by the number
of young birds which were only just able to fly,
there must be a considerable nesting colony.

The most interesting birds which we saw,
however, were some diving petrels, which
proved to belong to a species not hitherto
recorded from Tristan da Cunha. Superficially
these petrels resemble the diving petrel of the
Straits of Magellan, but they are somewhat
smaller and have a much greater power of
flight. On several occasions I saw them rise off
the water and fly away out of sight, whereas

* Sterna vittata.

68 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

those found in the Magellan Straits drop into the
water after a flight of about fifty to one hundred
yards. The Tristan da Cunha diving petrels
are constantly exposed to rough weather and break-
ing waves, and in consequence have to take wing
continually to avoid being drowned, and this fact
may account for their greater powers of flight.

They were met with soon after we left the
yacht, and became more numerous as we ap-
proached the land. Half a mile from the shore
they were on all sides of us, and appeared con-
tinually close to the boat, when instead of diving
they at once took to flight, and passed away at a
great speed.

The peak was covered by a mass of dense
clouds, through which there appeared every now
and then a yellow-nosed albatros sailing down
from its nesting-place to the sea. We were informed
that a great many of these birds as well as sooty
albatroses breed inside the crater at the top of the
peak, and that the great albatros does not nest
on the main island, but only on Inaccessible.

We made arrangements with one of the natives
to visit the peak the next day, and had great hopes
of making some interesting additions to our col-
lection of petrels. Alas, early next morning the
sea had risen to such an extent that landing was
quite out of the question. We lay to off the island
for three days, but the gale increased in fury
instead of abating, and as our stock of coal was

CLOUDS AND MIST 69

getting very low, we were forced to leave and shape
our course for Cape Town.

The steward bought from the natives of Tristan
da Cunha a quantity of small red berries which,
when stewed, were much like cranberries in flavour.
This fruit, which we were told formed the prin-
cipal food of the thrush-like bird, is probably the
Nertera depressa mentioned by Moseley (ibid.,
p. 99).

While the ship was hove to a great many birds
were seen, Antarctic skuas and sooty albatroses
being the most conspicuous. They were too know-
ing or else too well fed to be caught on a hook,
although much time was spent in fishing for them.
We also saw two very large porpoises, which were
nearly pure white ; they played about for several
hours round the bows of the ship.

During the three days of waiting the weather
was so thick that, although we were repeatedly
within a mile of Tristan da Cunha, we only twice
saw the peak, which suddenly appeared from
amongst the clouds and remained visible for
several minutes, the rest of the island being com-
pletely buried in clouds and mist.

CHAPTER VII.

DASSEN ISLAND.

SEVEN DAYS after leaving Tristan da Cunha we
sighted Table Mountain, and a few hours later
the anchor was dropped in Table Bay.

During the week at sea between the Tristan
Islands and the Cape we had a strong west wind
which was most favourable for sailing, and one
day's run under these conditions was 275 miles.

During our second day at sea, when nearly
400 miles from Tristan da Cunha, an Antarctic
skua and many terns* were met with. These
birds must wander many hundreds of miles from
land, and, as they were not likely to have been
migrating, it is probable that they follow shoals
of small fish, and thus in time get into mid-ocean
and far from land. Great numbers of petrels
and albatroses were also seen, and, indeed, birds
were more numerous in this part of the South
Atlantic than elsewhere in the oceans that we
visited. Petrels of several species were frequent,
either singly or in large flocks, while yellow-nosed

* Sterna vittata.

TABLE BAY 71

albatroses followed us until we were within sight
of Table Mountain, when they disappeared, and
their place was taken by the " Cape hen." *

Table Mountain was quite clear and free of
clouds, and the sea was a flat calm as we turned
into Table Bay. When we anchored in the Bay,
at some distance from Cape Town, we found that
cormorants were swarming in incredible numbers
right up to the shipping.

During our stay at Cape Town, the " Valhalla "
was dry-docked for scraping and painting, and
this necessitated our leaving the ship and taking
rooms in an hotel. Eleven days were spent here,
and we made several most interesting excursions
in company with Mr. W. L. Sclater, who was at
that time the director of the Cape Town Museum.
Under his guidance we climbed Table Mountain,
but by far the most interesting experience was
a trip to Dassen Island.

This island is situated about 35 miles from
Cape Town and is of great importance, not only
on account of its fine lighthouse, but also owing
to its being a Government " bird-preserve."

Cormorants' guano and penguins' eggs are
collected on the island in great quantities and
shipped to Cape Town.

Having obtained special permission to visit the
island we left Cape Town on February 3rd in the
Government tug " Magnet," which was carrying the

* Majaqueua cequinoctialis.

72 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

mails there. Soon after leaving Cape Town we
passed close to Robben Island, which is set apart
as a leper station. Many penguins were seen
during the passage, and numbers of Cape hens
followed the launch. Occasionally sooty and
black-browed albatroses flew by, but no specimens
were obtained as we had no guns with us, on
account of the strict regulations enforced on Dassen
Island, where the firing of guns is prohibited for
fear of disturbing the nesting birds.

As we drew close to the island, after a few
hours' passage, we came in view of enormous
numbers of penguins sitting in rows upon the
shore, while the sea in the immediate neighbour-
hood was crowded with them. I had never before
seen so many birds together, but even this was
nothing to what we were to witness the next
day. As soon as we landed we were met by one
of the lighthouse-keepers, as well as by one of the
men whose duty it is to see that the birds are
undisturbed.

Dassen Island is in no place more than a few
feet above the level of the sea ; it is entirely
uncultivated, and almost completely covered with
a low growing ice-plant. On the windward side
the shore is rocky, but in no place steep, while
on the leeward side it is sandy. The rest of the
island is covered with a deep layer of sand
in which the penguins dig holes for their nests
at the roots of the ice-plants.

•M (

PENGUINS AND THEIR BURROWS 73

As soon as we had superintended the landing
of the baggage, of which our cameras formed an
important part, we set off for the lighthouse,
which is on the windward side of the island, under
the guidance of one of the assistant light-keepers.

A narrow path leading from the landing-place
to the lighthouse is the only track in which one
may walk when the birds are nesting.

On each side of the track were numbers of
penguins, both adult and young birds, while in
many cases we saw old birds digging out their
burrows, at the end of which their two eggs are
laid. They appear to use their feet only for
digging. Lying flat on their breasts they throw
the sand out behind them with their strong
webbed feet, and all over the island as far as the
eye could reach showers of sand were shooting
up into the air.

Our guide informed us that we were too early
for the height of the nesting season, only a few
penguins being at this time on the island. He
added that the number of breeding penguins on
this small island, little more than a mile square,
was estimated at nine millions, a truly astonishing
number ; but as the birds on shore at the time
of our visit were described as " very few " I can
well believe that the total estimate is not ex-
aggerated.

By the time we reached the lighthouse it was
nearly dark, and the light was already shining

74 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

from the iron tower. Mr. Bennett, the light-keeper,
was most kind and obliging, and at once told us
that he would be delighted to put us up for the
night in his house. Moreover, he showed us over
the lighthouse, which is one of the most important
at the Cape. It is about 160 feet in height, and
is built entirely of iron. The light is revolving
and white, and about 4J gallons of oil are burnt
every night. Mr. Bennett told me that very few
birds ever strike the glass of the lighthouse,
and this is not surprising, as Dassen Island is too
far south for migrating passerine birds.

Outside the windows of my room was a small
colony of about twenty penguins which, through-
out the night, kept up a continual " braying."
The name " Jackass Penguin " has been given
most appropriately to this bird, for their cry is a
perfect imitation of the bray of an ass. The birds
near the house were answered by the rest of the
penguins on the island, and a most extraordinary
noise was the result, a constant " braying "
resounding from all parts of the island.

Early next morning we met outside the light-
house and examined some of the penguins'
nesting holes, many of which contained eggs and
sitting birds. No nest is made, but the two eggs,
which are white, with a shell of coarse texture,
are deposited in a hollow scooped out at the foot
of the ice-plants, or in a natural depression in the
ground. The female sits very close, and when

A MOST WONDERFUL SIGHT 75

disturbed crouches down and rolls her head from
side to side, occasionally making a short rush at
the intruder, and all the while she utters a
grunting noise. As a rule the male stands close
to the nest ; occasionally, however, he leaves his
mate and walks down to the sea in search of food
for her and himself.

Dassen Island must offer a most wonderful sight
when all the birds are ashore, as even at the time
of our visit there were at least one pair of birds
to every square yard.

Mr. Almada, the " watcher," informed us that
most of the birds on shore at this time were
moulting. They come up from the sea coated with
fat and remain on shore for the period of the moult,
which takes about a month, and during this time
they never enter the sea for food, but appear to
live on their accumulated fat. When the moult is
complete, the penguins go to sea again for another
month and again become enormously fat. They
then land again and commence to breed, and as
soon as the young are completely feathered,
all of them leave the island and spend some time
at sea before the next breeding season commences.
All the year round there are a few pairs nesting
on the island. These may possibly be early bred
young of the previous year, or old birds which
for some reason have had their moult retarded.

The eggs are collected and sent to Cape Town
for sale, where they fetch about ten shillings per

76 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

hundred. Penguins do not make guano to the
same extent as do the cormorants and their
nesting-places are " scraped " once only every
year.

After breakfast we set out for the sandy shore,
where most of the penguins were gathered together.
It was a truly remarkable sight. As far as the
eye could see was an unending mass of penguins.
Thousands upon thousands of the comical-looking
birds were sitting close together along the sandy
shore, while many more were arriving from the
sea and walking solemnly up to join their com-
panions. All were either in full moult or just
beginning to cast their feathers. The moult of
these birds is somewhat peculiar. The feathers of
the back come off in large patches beginning
from the tail, and the birds are then bare except
for a coating of soft down amongst which the new
feathers make their appearance. The sand was
thickly covered with feathers, while amongst the
rocks and ice-plants were " drifts " of them
several inches in depth.

We photographed the penguins as they sat
on the shore, and they showed little fear of us.
We walked amongst them without causing them
much alarm, and they would not go into the sea
unless they were very hard pressed, and then they
remained but a very short time in the water.

There were a few young ones on the island, and
one which I took alive with the intention of making

CORMORANTS IN VAST NUMBERS 77

a " skin " of it, became so tame and friendly
that I had not the heart to kill it. It subsequently
became a great pet and was brought safely home.
Young penguins are at first covered with a dark
greenish-brown down, and the feathers when they
begin to grow make their appearance first just
above the tail, the head and neck being the last
to be feathered

After spending some time with the penguins
we walked over to another part of the island where
the cormorants were nesting. Three, if not four,
species of cormorants nest on Dassen Island, but
of these the commonest is the Cape cormorant,*
which was breeding in vast numbers. A few pairs
of the darker coloured P. neglectus were nesting,
but they appeared to be rare. The Cape cor-
morant is the principal guano-producing bird on
the island. In appearance this bird somewhat
resembles our shag, but is smaller. They had
young at the time of our visit, and all of these were
ready to fly. The stench in this part of the island
was almost unbearable at first, but after a time
we became accustomed to it, and did not notice it.

Several photographs were taken of the cor-
morants, but they were not so tame as the penguins,
and if one approached to within a few yards of the
colony, all the old birds and most of the young
took to flight with an outburst of screaming.

Hovering over the colony were numbers of

* Phalacrocorax capensis.

78 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

black-backed gulls,* a bird much like our lesser
black-backed gull in shape and coloration. These
birds, we were told, are most destructive to the
cormorants, as they devour the eggs and newly-
hatched young as soon as the old birds leave the
nests uncovered.

Here also were a great number of sacred ibises, |
which had built their nests in colonies amongst
those of the cormorants. So close together were the
nests of these ibises that they appeared to be one
mass of rubbish with numerous depressions, in
each of which were eggs or young, but mostly
young. The ibises rose in a cloud and flew away
at our approach. A great number of young ones,
however, were unable to fly, and two were caught
alive and taken back to the ship, where they were
safely reared, and they are now in the London
Zoological Gardens. When newly-hatched these
ibises are covered with grey and black down. The
head and neck of the adult are covered with jet
black skin bare of feathers, but this baldness is
not attained until the bird is two years old. Prior
to that the head and neck are clothed with black
feathers ; those of the throat and foreneck are,
however, moulted after a few weeks, and are
replaced by new white feathers, which are the last
to be shed before the bird arrives at its fully
adult plumage.

We were somewhat surprised to see the sacred

* Larua dominicanus. f Ibis aethiopica.

SACRED IBISES 79

ibis here, as there is no regular supply of fresh
water on the island, but we were told that they
usually came to the water troughs which are put
round the lighthouse for the fowls belonging to
the keeper. The principal food of this bird on
Dassen Island appears to be the intestines of the
young cormorants, and all the young ibises which
we caught ejected a mass of entrails. Owing to
their predilection for this food, these beautiful
birds are considered as vermin, and are slaughtered
on every possible occasion by the inhabitants.
A great many of the young escape, however,
owing to the nests being placed close to those of
the cormorants, near which no one is allowed to

g°-

Besides the birds already mentioned there was

seen close to the lighthouse a pair of ringed plovers, *
from whose actions it became evident that there
were young in the vicinity, and after a careful
search we found one in downy plumage. These
birds are not unlike the Kentish plover in size
and general appearance, but they are somewhat
darker and have no black collar ; moreover,
the breast of the adult is of a buff colour.
Several pairs of them were seen on the island.
This species is found over the whole of Africa,
from the Cape to Egypt.

A pair of black oyster-catchers f were evidently
about to breed. There was also a large flock of

* JEgialitis pecuaria. f Haematopus moquini.

80 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

sanderlings in full winter plumage on the shore,
and in their company were several turnstones,
— both very common visitors to England in spring
and autumn. Occasionally a few small parties
of ruffs and reeves,* another well-known British
bird, were met with. Flying about round the
lighthouse were several swallows of our familiar
speciesf and a pair of wagtails of one of the Cape
species, £ which is not unlike our pied wagtail, were
about to nest on the lightkeeper's house.

Giant petrels were swimming in the sea close
to the shore on the windward side, and they
probably fed on the young cormorants and
penguins, especially those that were weak and
sickly.

As we had to get on board the tug at mid-day,
our time ashore was limited, but we managed to
cover a good deal of ground and saw most of the
principal nesting-places.

On our way back to Cape Town we saw little
of interest, with the exception of a noddy tern,§
which has not previously been recorded from the
Cape of Good Hope.

The day before we sailed away from Cape Town
a ribbon fish (Regalecus) of about seven feet in
length was caught by some fishermen in Table Bay.
It was brought on board, and Lord Crawford
purchased it for the British Museum. It was

* Machetes pugnax. f Hirundo rustica

| Motacilla capensis. § Anotts atolidus.

i • B

A RIBBON FISH 81

somewhat damaged about the head, and the bril-
liant scarlet dorsal fin was unfortunately rather
broken. We put it in the freezing room and so
brought it to England.

CHAPTER VIII.

MOZAMBIQUE CHANNEL AND COMORO ISLANDS.

WE sailed from Cape Town on February 8th,
1906, and proceeded to Durban, where a day was
spent in coaling.

After leaving Durban Lord Crawford intended
to land on Europa Island, which has only once
been visited by a naturalist ; but this idea had
to be abandoned, owing to the extremely bad
weather encountered throughout the Mozambique
Channel.

Two days after we left Durban, a gale got up,
and in two more days this developed into a cyclone,
which blew with unabated fury for twenty-four
hours. It started about nine o'clock at night ;
rain fell in torrents, and for several hours we all
stood on deck holding on to the rigging of the
mizzen-mast. The sea was terrible, and enormous
waves towered above the ship. The " Valhalla "
was hove to, and rode out the gale in splendid
fashion.

Distinguished above the roaring of the wind and
the tumult of the breaking waves we could hear the

A CYCLONE 83

wild cries of whimbrels and great numbers of other
wading birds, and terns could be seen flying round
the ship. At early dawn a tern was blown against
the rigging so fiercely that one of its wings was
completely ripped away.

In the morning the sea was still as high as
during the previous night, and as far as the eye could
see enormous quantities of birds — terns, whimbrels,
little stints, curlew-sandpipers — were flying round
the ship in flocks, though none came aboard.
Later in the day common swallows* appeared,
as also did a large harrier. The swallows came
on board at dusk and crowded together on the top
of the deck house. A night jarf was also caught
on deck. Throughout the day we remained
hove to, and it was impossible to ascertain our
position owing to the thick mist which hung over
the sea. We knew that somewhere on our star-
board side there was a small coral island, Bassas
da India, while to port was the coast of Africa.
Suddenly, however, about two o'clock in the
afternoon, the wind dropped, and, the fog lifting
for a few minutes, we obtained a glimpse of the
Mozambique coast. After this we got under steam
again, and continued on our course for the Comoro
Islands.

Two hours later an open boat was sighted,
and we steamed for it. It proved to be a fishing
boat full of natives, who had been blown out from

* Hirundo rustica. | Caprimulgus unwini.

84 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
the Mozambique coast the night before. Their
sail was torn to pieces, and they had no food or
water. Our lifeboat was lowered at once in
charge of the second mate, and we provided the
natives with biscuits, water, a sail, and some
rope.

I believe that boats often get blown away from
the coast in the Mozambique Channel in this way.
Later on, when we were in the SeycheJle Islands,
we heard several extraordinary tales of boats being
blown away during a hurricane, and being carried
for great distances.

At daybreak on February 23rd, Mayotte, one
of the Comoro Islands, was sighted, and a short
time afterwards we entered the harbour, which is
studded with little islands thickly covered with
vegetation.

As soon as we anchored off the town black kites*
appeared. These birds seem to be very common
winter visitors to the Comoro Islands, as well as
to Madagascar and many islands to the west of
it. Round about the ship, during the whole of
the time we spent at Mayotte, were many sharks,
though most of them were small ones. Several
of these sharks were caught with a tarpon rod and
line, and gave excellent sport.

Nearly the whole of the original vegetation has
been cleared on Mayotte, and on one peak only
is it now possible to see the virgin forests with

* Mttvus migrans.

MANGROVE SWAMPS 85

which the island was formerly covered. The island
was cleared for the cultivation of sugar cane, but
this industry being at a very low ebb the greater
part is now uncultivated, and is becoming covered
with a thick growth of acacia trees. At one
place we landed at a wharf, which formerly belonged
to a large sugar factory, which was still standing
with the machinery for crushing the cane, although
it had been abandoned for several years.

The shore on the leeward side is bordered with
mangrove swamps, which are covered by the sea
at high tide. The mud in these swamps makes a
fine feeding ground for wading birds. The most
remarkable of these was the crab-plover,* a bird
which much resembles an avocet in size and
coloration. Its bill, however, is short and stout,
and very different from the avocet's slender
upturned bill. These crab-plovers were feeding
in considerable numbers on the shore in company
with curlews and whimbrels, and other well-known
British wading birds, such as the common sand-
piper| and greenshank.J

Among the mangrove trees were numbers of
little kingfishers, § somewhat smaller than the
common kingfisher and with a remarkable mop-like
crest, composed of long soft feathers which hang
down over the eyes and back of the head.

The country close to the town is cultivated,

* Dromas ardeola. f Tetanus hypoleucus.

J Totanus canescens. § Corythornis cristata.

H

86 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

sugar cane and maize being the principal crops,
while a few limes are also grown. Our first ex-
cursion was to the cultivated country close to the
harbour, where several interesting birds and butter-
flies were obtained. Among the former should be
mentioned the white-eye,* a little bird of about
the size of a willow-wren, but of a deep lemon-
yellow colour on the breast, and with pale chestnut
flanks. The eye is encircled by a ring of white
silky feathers. This species is peculiar to Mayotte,
and is one of the commonest birds there. They
were in large flocks, especially at the edge of the
mangrove swamps.

Paradise flycatchers were also seen in plenty,
and one of these birds which we shot proved to
belong to a new species.")" A beautiful little sun-
bird was also very common near the shore, and
two species of red weaver birds were obtained.
One of these, Nesocanthis eminentissima, which
is peculiar to the Comoro Islands, is slightly
larger than our sparrow, and the male has a bright
crimson breast during the breeding season, but
when not in breeding plumage it is duD olive-brown,
like the females and young. The other weaver
bird, called Foudia madagascariensis, is of a
brilliant scarlet, the back being spotted with
black. It is probable that this species, in
common with other birds, has been introduced
from Madagascar.

* Zosterops mayottensis. f Terpsiphone lindsayi.

A NEW SWIFT 87

The grey-headed lovebird* is not uncommon
on the cultivated land near the seashore. This
small green parroquet, the males of which have a
grey head and neck, is an inhabitant of Madagascar,
and possibly owes its presence in the Comoros
to human agency. It is a common cage bird,
and great numbers are imported from Madagascar
to Europe.

On one occasion we visited a small island situated
in the middle of the harbour. This island, which
is marked on the charts as " Buzi," was thickly
covered with vegetation, and in some places it
was impossible to force a way through the prickly
clumps of acacia trees. The heat was intense,
and I have never felt the sun so much as I did
on Buzi.

A number of swifts were flying over the island,
and after I had waited for some time they flew
near enough to be secured. These birds, which
somewhat resembled our common swift, proved to
belong to an undescribed species which I have
named Cypselus mayottensis.^

This little island was tenanted by a large colony
of fruit bats.J They were, however, in the thick
trees on the inaccessible side of the island, where
it rises straight up from the sea. Every evening
numbers of them flew across to the main island,

* Agapornis cane*.

f " Bulletin Brit. Orn. Club," Vol. XVI., p. 104, June, 1906.

% Pteropu* comorensia. See Preface to 2nd Edition.

H2

88 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

and one evening, on our way back to the ship
after a day's collecting in the mangrove swamps,
we shot one as it flew over the steam launch.
Its fur was of a reddish colour, thick and soft.
A most unpleasant skunk-like smell clings to one's
hands after touching one of these bats, and this
is especially noticeable when the animal has just
been shot. On several occasions I saw these fruit
bats splash into the salt water of the harbour,
but whether they were drinking or washing I
do not know.

During our visit to the Comoros we steamed
across to Anjouan Island, but owing to the heavy
sea and strong wind we were unable to get in close,
and had to return to Mayotte. This was much
to be regretted, as the fauna of Anjouan is some-
what different from that of Mayotte.

Our last day was spent in the virgin forest,
on one of the highest peaks of Mayotte. My special
object on this excursion was to get examples of
the peculiar fruit-pigeon,* which is only to be found
on the wooded peaks. We saw, altogether, four
examples of this remarkable bird, and I shot two
adults. In appearance it is short and thickset,
the entire plumage is deep blue, with the ex-
ception of the head, neck, and upper breast,
which are grey tinged with yellow. The feathers
of the fore neck and upper breast are elongated
and lanceolate in form, while round the eye is a

* Alectroenaa sganzini.

FORET D AMBRE, MADAGASCAR.

[89

VIRGIN FOREST 89

bare patch of red skin. The " coo " of the Comoro
fruit-pigeon is extraordinarily deep and resonant.
These pigeons were very tame, and took no notice
whatever of our presence. There is no doubt
that they are now extremely rare.

A native guide told me that he had often seen
the black parrot* in this same forest-covered
peak, but unfortunately we did not come across
it.

The Madagascar weaver bird was somewhat
abundant on the outskirts of the forest, and
the only other bird seen there was a thrush| of
about the size of our blackbird ; it has an orange-
coloured bill, but the plumage is greyish and the
crown of the head black. It is a very noisy bird,
its loud chattering call-note at once betrays its
presence.

This patch of virgin forest extends from about
1,000 feet above sea-level nearly to the summit
of the peak, and is composed of tall trees under
which dense masses of creepers and ferns grow in
luxuriance. Numerous streams of pure fresh water
intersect the narrow pathway through the forest,
and owing to this and to the deep shade given by
the trees, the air was quite refreshing, and in strik-

* Two species of these parrots are found in the Comoros, Coracopaia
comorenaia and C. aibilana, though neither have apparently been
previously recorded from Mayotte. My informant gave me such
a clear description of a black parrot, however, that there is no doubt
that one of the above species is found on Mayotte.

f Ixocincla madagaacarienais.

90 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

ing contrast to that of the lower parts of the
island.

On the edge of the forest we found a large
colony of fruit bats, which were hanging from the
upper branches of the trees. They became very
restless as soon as we approached, many taking
to flight with shrill cries. Others climbed about
from branch to branch, using the long claw on their
wings as well as their feet, and hanging head down-
wards.

In the depth of the forest we came on a small
party of lemurs,* which were feeding on the fruit
of a densely foliaged tree. I shot one for identi-
fication, but was unwilling to sacrifice more of
these charming little creatures, which showed not
the slightest fear, but merely looked down at us
with their great black eyes, and uttered continually
their characteristic grunting noise.

While walking quietly along under the trees
on the look-out for pigeons I surprised a family
party of tenrecs, which were rooting amongst the
dead leaves for insects. These creatures are much
like large hedgehogs in appearance, but their
spines are much softer ; moreover, they have the
same disagreeable stench as the fruit bats, and
those I brought on board were not favourably
received by my companions. In spite of its un-
pleasant smell the tenrec is used as an article of
food in Madagascar, and is greatly appreciated

* Lemur mayottensis.

A WALKING FISH 91

by the natives. Possibly it has been introduced
into the Comoro Islands from Madagascar on
account of its edible qualities. The natives of the
Comoro Islands also hold the lemur in great esteem
as a delicacy, and they declare it to be, when young,
quite as good eating as chicken.

Lower down the hill, amongst the sugar cane
and other cultivated crops, were several species of
birds, but most of these were without any doubt
introductions, and as such were not worthy of
notice. Numbers of small swifts* were flying round
the coconut palms near our landing place. Owing
to its rapid flight this swift is very difficult to shoot,
so that only one specimen was obtained. This
one fell on a patch of bare ground which was
honeycombed by the burrows of land-crabs ; before
I could pick it up a crab, starting forward and
seizing it, dragged it underground, and only with
great difficulty was I able to open up the burrow
and rescue the bird.

Green bee-eaters")" were seen in numbers on the
low ground amongst the cultivation, and it is
interesting to note that this species ranges from
Madagascar across Africa to the west coast.

Late in the afternoon we walked down to the
mangrove swamp where our boat was waiting for
us. Here we came across that peculiar fish, the
walking goby.J It was in great numbers on the

* Tachornis gracilis. t Merops superciliosus.

J Periophthalrmts koebreuteri.

92 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

mud of the mangrove swamp, where it spends most
of its time, though always close to water. We
found it extremely difficult to obtain a specimen.
The fish stays quite still until one at temps to catch
it, when it at once makes off across the water with
a series of leaps, to reappear at some distance away
on the mud or on a dead branch lying on the water's
edge. Sometimes, as one walks through the
swamp, numbers of these fish skip away in all
directions, but however closely they are pursued
they never remain long in the water. On land the
pectoral fins are used as legs, and the fish is able
to walk with ease over the soft mud. Species of
this genus are found throughout the tropics.

Early on the morning of March 3rd, 1906, we
left Mayotte and steamed away, bound for Diego
Suarez, the principal port of Madagascar.

CHAPTER IX.

LA FORET D' AMBRE, MADAGASCAR.

THE day after we left Mayotte, Cape Ambre was
sighted, and at noon we entered the harbour of
Diego Suarez, the principal port of Madagascar.
The town is strongly fortified and, owing to a
deep indentation of the coastline, it has an ideal
harbour.

The governor of Diego Suarez was exceedingly
kind. He granted us a permit for collecting
during out stay, and also supplied us with free
passes for the " train " from the town to Camp
d' Ambre, which we wished to visit in order to see
the great forest of Ambre. Moreover, a message
was sent to the officer in charge of this camp to
give us all the help possible during our stay there.
We started at 7 o'clock in the morning and boarded
the " train," which was in reality a tram consisting
of two carriages drawn by four mules. The road
was a steep ascent, and we were three hours in
reaching the camp, which is 2000 feet above sea-
level. The first part of the road led through
fields of long grass, in which were great numbers

94 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

of quails, and every now and then one would rise
close to the hoofs of the mules. Small dark-
coloured larks — Mirafra hova — which were even
more abundant, rose in flocks from almost under
the wheels of the tram, and along the track
in front of us swarms of these little birds were
running.

After a few miles forest took the place of pasture
land, and for a considerable distance the track
lay between rows of tall trees, the branches of which
almost met overhead. In this forest we saw a
flock of Guinea fowls* which, being surprised at a
bend in the track, took to flight close ahead of the
tram. At some distance from the camp the tram
lines came to an end, and the rest of the journey
had to be performed in a large two- wheeled waggon
drawn by mules, which brought us, after an hour's
hard pulling, to our destination. We were met
by the colonel commanding the camp, who con-
ducted us to the hotel where rooms had been
ordered. Camp d'Ambre is a convalescent station,
and all soldiers suffering from fever are sent there
to recuperate. The camp consists of barracks,
officers' quarters, and a small, but clean and
well-managed hotel. The surroundings are very
beautiful. In front the hill slopes abruptly, allow-
ing a distant view of Diego Suarez. On both sides
the country is covered with grass, while in the rear
lies the Foret d'Ambre — a splendid virgin forest

* Numida mitrata.

FORET D'AMBRE, MADAGASCAR.

~
[95

BLACK PARROTS 95

stretching for four hundred miles into the interior
of Madagascar.

As soon as we had lunched we set off, under
the guidance of one of the officers who was a keen
entomologist, to explore a strip of forest in a small
valley near the camp. Every valley in this
neighbourhood was filled with luxuriant vegetation
while the sides and summits of the hills were
covered with good pasture. In this particular
valley a path led from the camp to a patch of
cultivated ground, which was about half an hour's
walk below us. The forest was full of birds, but
they were not easy to see, on account of the height
of the trees and the thick foliage. As we walked
down, I saw a small hawk, much like a sparrow-
hawk, sitting on a branch of one of the trees, and,
on shooting it, I found it was Astur franciscce,
a species which is peculiar to Madagascar.

As we entered the cultivation at the bottom of
the valley, a large dark-coloured bird flew overhead
uttering a loud, but most musical, whistle. This
proved to be one of the Madagascar " black "
parrots — Coracopsis vasa. We were much sur-
prised at the extremely rapid flight of this bird,
as it dashed over us with outstretched neck, into
the forest. The following day we had a good view
of a pair of these parrots sitting in the top of a tree
close to the camp, and we also became acquainted
with a smaller species — C. nigra. These parrots
are, we were informed, quite common in every

96 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

strip of forest in the neighbourhood of the Camp
d'Ambre.

The cultivated ground at the foot of the valley
was only a few acres in extent, and not many birds
were to be seen there. A pair of wagtails,* feeding
in a small stream of water, and a stonechatj were
both interesting because found only in Madagascar;
but on the edge of the cultivation I saw a bird of
more general interest — the lark-heeled cuckoo. £
The foot of this bird is most remarkable. The two
toes which point forward are normal, but the two
which project backwards are of a peculiar forma-
tion, one of them being fitted with a short curved
claw, while the other has a long straight spur,
like the hind claw of a skylark. This species also
is found only in Madagascar, where it appears to
be abundant. There were great numbers of
weaver birds in the cultivated ground, and they
all belonged to the brilliantly coloured species
(Foudia madagascariensis), which we had met
with at Mayotte.

Early in the afternoon it began to rain, and this
developed into a steady downpour, which continued
for the rest of the day. We were soon wet
through, and in this condition had to attend a
reception. We were received by the colonel
commanding the camp, and his staff, and were
so hospitably entertained that it was long after

* MotacUla ftaviventris. f Pratincola sybilla.

* Centropus toulou.

FORET D'AMBRE, MADAGASCAR.

[96

BIRD-LIFE IN THE FOREST 97

midnight before we got back to our hotel.
However, at six o'clock next morning we were
ready for an excursion into the big forest, and,
after a time, our friends, who were to accompany
us, arrived. An hour's walk brought us to the
forest, and on entering it we followed for several
miles a broad path, which was made by the
Foreign Legion many years ago, and extends for
twenty miles. The forest was full of life ;
brilliant butterflies fluttered over the vegetation
bordering the path, and numerous birds flitted
through the trees. The vegetation was so dense
that the only way I was able to get specimens
at all was by shooting those which came into the
trees overhanging the path. Pigeons* and black
parrots appeared to be numerous ; and in the dense
growth of bushes near the path there were reed-
warblers of a species called Bernieria madagasca-
riensis, peculiar to Madagascar. I had some
difficulty at first in seeing the latter, as they
rarely showed themselves, and the call-note, a
deep " churr," was quite ventriloquial in effect.
Flocks of white-eyest were flying from tree to
tree, searching for insects ; their clear calls re-
sounded from all sides, but owing to the great
height of the trees they were usually out of range,
and I only obtained one example. One of the
most striking birds was the grey-headed love-bird, J

* Alectroenas madagascariensis. f Zoster ops madagascariensis.

J Agapornis cana.

98 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
well-known as a cage bird in Europe. It is in-
digenous to Madagascar, but has been introduced
into the Comoros and doubtless other islands. The
male is green with a grey head and neck, while
the female is green all over ; both have a black
bar across the tail. They were always in pairs,
and their flight was wonderfully rapid.

We were somewhat disappointed at not meeting
with lemurs in Madagascar. After having seen
so many in the Comoro Islands we had had hopes
of finding them in the Foret d' Ambre, but although
several hours were spent there we saw none of these
beautiful creatures. The only mammal we actually
met with in this forest was the tenrec,* several of
which were caught by a small terrier belonging to
our guide. In one place, guided by the barking
of the dog, I found a family party of these strange-
looking " hedgehogs " under the roots of a fallen
tree, while, in an open tract of grass, lying near the
edge of the forest, the dog found several and killed
them all, in spite of the fearful smell which they
emitted on being annoyed.

Early in the afternoon, after our walk in this
fascinating forest, we returned to Diego Suarez.
We descended in the same tram as that used for
the ascent on the previous day, but so steep was
the slope that the tram slid down of its own accord,
and no mules were required until shortly before
we reached the town. While passing through a

* Centetes ecaudatiw.

A WILD CAT 99

strip of forest, we had a good view of a fossa,* a fine
cat peculiar to Madagascar, which stood in the
middle of the track and gazed at the car. When
we had approached to within about 50 yards,
however, it dashed off into the forest. In another
place we rushed through a party of guinea-fowls,
old and young, which scattered themselves right
and left to avoid the tram.

The following two days were spent in collecting
in the neighbourhood of the harbour. Here were
some of the largest sharks I have ever seen, and
every morning two or three of these monsters
were swimming idly round the yacht, but they
would not take a bait of any kind. They were in
every case surrounded by a shoal of sucking fish.

On March 9th, 1906, we left Madagascar for
Glorioso Island.

* Cryptoprocta ferox.

CHAPTER X.

GLORIOSO ISLAND.

GLORIOSO, or Tile Glorieuse, which we sighted on
March 10th, 1906, belongs to France, and is at the
present time rented by a Frenchman, who grows
there a large quantity of coconuts for export.
It comprises besides the main island, which is
from a mile and a half to two miles long and about
a mile in breadth, a small, densely wooded islet, the
He de Lise, separated from the mainland by about
three miles of very shallow water. Moreover,
between these two islands is a third, which is little
more than a large rock covered with grass, on
which thousands of noddy terns,* as well as one
or two pairs of boobies, | were nesting at the time
of our visit.

Glorioso is a coral island, but to all appearances
not of so ancient a formation as the neighbouring
islands of Assumption and Aldabra. A deep layer
of sand covers most of it, and on the leeward side
this has drifted into a fairly high ridge. At the
time of our visit, the greater part of the island was

* Anous atolidu*. f ^u^a leucogastra.

» * •*

THE ISLAND INHABITED 101

overgrown with trees and scrub, which in some
places had become so thick as to be impenetrable.
Here and there were groves of coconut trees, and
in one place a large plantation of maize.

Our information in Madagascar was to the effect
that Glorioso had no inhabitants, so that when
we put in to the sandy leeward shore we set off
immediately in different directions to collect.
It was with some surprise that, after a short walk,
I came upon a large field of maize in which two
negroes were working. They at once came to me,
and informed me that the owner of the island
wished to see me. I followed them to a small
settlement, almost hidden by casuarina trees.
Over one of the houses the French flag was flying.
On entering the house I was met by the pro-
prietor, who appeared to be somewhat indignant
at our landing on his territory without permission.
When matters were explained, however, he became
quite friendly, and after a while gave us permission
to collect or do whatever we liked on his property.
He informed me that he had rented Glorioso for
a term of years to cultivate all the spots suitable
for coconuts. The palms which he had already
planted appeared to be doing well indeed, for,
although young, they had already borne an ex-
cellent crop of nuts.

There are five resident species of land-birds
in Glorioso : all except one of these are identical

with Madagascan species. The only bird which

I

102 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

has been described as peculiar is a dove,* but since
we did not find it, although we walked nearly over
the whole of the island during our short stay, I
fear it must be nearly, if not quite, extinct.
Great frigate birds were most conspicuous. The
males were flying overhead, their scarlet pouches
extended, while the females were sitting upon
their nests — mere heaps of sticks placed near the
top of tall trees — or were crowded together in
the tree-tops in company with gannets.f Lord
Crawford shot several adult frigate birds to take
home in spirit, as it was not known by what
means this bird extends its pouch during the
breeding season.

Of the land-birds the white-eye, of the same
species as that seen in the Foret d' Ambre, Madagas-
car, was the most abundant, and it was to be found
in great numbers all over the island. Now and
again a black kitej was observed sailing overhead.
This species is, as far as we could ascertain, only a
winter visitor to Glorioso, and it is at no time
abundant there. A few crows § of the same
species as that found in the Comoros and Mada-
gascar are residents. It is somewhat surprising
that there is no rail on Glorioso, as on both Assump-
tion and Aldabra there are forms of this bird,
distinct but nearly allied to the rail of Madagascar.
We made particular enquiries of the proprietor

* Turtur coppingeri. f Svla piecator.

J Mttvua migrans. § Corvus scapulatus.

HAWK-MOTHS AND TURTLES 103

on this subject, but he assured us that there was
no bird of the kind there.

Numbers of domestic fowls were running about
in a more or less wild state. They did not show
any signs of reversion to their ancestral form ;
on the contrary, those we met with were of all
kinds and colours, though very small ; many of
them took to flight on being alarmed.

Butterflies and moths were numerous, and a
species of hawk-moth was hovering round the
flowers of a convolvulus in incredible numbers.
On several occasions we took three or more at
one sweep of the net.

There seems to be little fresh water here ; as
far as we could see there was none at all on the
leeward side, and but a small pool near the
settlement, though I believe there is a well near
the house of the proprietor. This scarcity of
fresh water may account for the rareness of the
dove before mentioned, as pigeons and doves are
known to require plenty of water. I presume
that the fowls visit the settlement for water ;
at all events they were more numerous near the
houses than elsewhere.

Both the green turtle* and the hawksbillf were
abundant in the neighbourhood of Glorioso, the
latter being the more valuable, as it is from the
shell of this turtle that tortoise-shell is made. The
green turtles frequent the sandy beach to deposit

* Chelone mydaa (Linn.). | Chelone imbricate (Schweigg).

i2

104 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

their eggs, and the shore was covered with their
tracks. Two large ones were caught during our
stay, and were kept alive on board until we reached
Aldabra, when they were given to the overseer
of that island.

The second day of our stay off Glorioso was
spent on the neighbouring He de Lise. Landing
first on Glorioso, we took on board the proprietor,
who volunteered to act as our guide, and then we
started on a three mile row to our destination.
On the way we visited the rocky islet previously
mentioned as lying between the two islands.
Here was a large colony of sea-birds. Noddy
terns were all sitting on their eggs, most of which
were fresh. The eggs were laid in a shallow
depression on the grass, and the " nests " were so
close together that it was difficult to walk without
treading on the eggs. The gannets had not com-
menced to lay, while a few sooty terns,* which were
flying overhead, were evidently not nesting.

After a long and difficult " pull," owing to the
quickly falling tide, we at last reached He de Lise.
In spite of the thick growth of trees and bushes,
there was not a bird of any kind to be seen — no
sign of a land or sea-bird, although, judging from
the dried remains of sooty terns on a bare portion
of the islet, I fancy that there must be a large colony
nesting there at some period of the year. There is
a roughly-built shed on the island, and close by

* Sterna fuliginosa.

FORMIDABLE ROBBER-CRABS 105

are two huge iron tanks filled with rainwater,
which is stored, as our host informed us, in case of
a ship being wrecked there.

The most interesting event of our excursion
was the discovery of several robber-crabs (Birgus
latro), a highly specialized form of hermit-crab
of huge proportions. It is a most formidable-
looking creature, and, unlike the hermit-crab,
carries no shell, but has the tail covered with a
jointed " armour," like that of the lobster. The
robber-crab is of a reddish colour, though in some
specimens there is a tinge of blue both on the head
and on part of the upper surface of the body.
Its food is said to consist chiefly of coconuts,
but as there are none of these nuts on He de Lise
it feeds on maize, of which it devours enormous
quantities. Curiously enough, although plentiful
on He de Lise, this crab is not found on Glorioso
Island, and our host was fearful lest it should by
some means get across to his coconut plantations.
I examined several heads of maize, from which
the seed had been shorn off by the claws of this
crab. Each head of corn had the appearance of
having been shaved with a sharp knife. The
robber-crab is nocturnal here, and during the day
hides in hollows up in the trees. We found several,
but they were so securely ensconced that we had
to hew part of the tree-trunks with an axe before
we could get at them. Their strength is terrific.
When held by the claws they twine their legs

106 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

round one's hand and squeeze with a vice-like
grip. The huge claws are of prodigious strength,
and one of our sailors, who caught a small specimen,
had a piece of flesh cut clean out of the palm of
his hand by a single nip. The two crabs which we
secured were enclosed in a paraffin tin and brought
on board. Either these, or two others, which we
afterwards caught on Assumption Island, escaped
from the tin by tearing off a large piece near the
lid. After such an exhibition of strength, one can
more easily credit the accounts of the destruction
done to coconuts by these crabs.

On our way back to the ship we fell in with
numbers of both kinds of turtles and several large
fishes, probably barracuda. Leaving our host at
Glorioso and boarding the " Valhalla," we shortly
afterwards steamed away, bound for Assumption.

CHAPTER XI.

ASSUMPTION ISLAND.

EARLY on the morning following our departure
from Glorioso, Assumption Island was sighted.

Assumption, like Glorioso, as I have previously
mentioned, is of coral formation, but apparently
of a much older date. It is about two miles long
by a mile in width, at the broadest part, and is
less thickly wooded than Glorioso. The central
part is almost bare of vegetation, the only growth
being a few low bushes and a thin wiry grass
which springs from the cracks and fissures in the
coral. At one end of the windward side is a mass
of drifted sand, about 60 feet in height, covered
with Jow straggling bushes, while on the leeward
side there are a few casuarina trees, and in one
spot on the shore three coconut palms.

The shore is composed of sand, but the island
itself is a rock-like mass of coral. Close to the shore
are some deep wells containing water, but whether
salt or fresh we were unable to ascertain. These
wells are perfectly circular, and apparently of
natural formation. That there is a constant supply

108 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
of fresh water is proved by the numbers of in-
habitant land-birds, but, so far as we could as-
certain, the water-supply is entirely dependent on
the rainfall. At the time of our visit there was
plenty of it, every depression in the coral being
full of sweet, clear water.

All these small islands to the north-west of
Madagascar are inhabited by a few species of land-
birds, and most of them have their peculiar species.
Previous to our landing on it, Assumption had
only once been visited by a naturalist — Dr. W.
L. Abbott — who landed there some years ago,
but I believe only for a very short time. We
therefore looked forward to our visit with pleasur-
able anticipation, and we were not disappointed,
for, apart from spending a most enjoyable time,
we were successful in obtaining, amongst other
interesting things, three previously undescribed
birds.

On first entering the belt of trees and low bushes
which fringes the shore, we were greeted by a chorus
of squeals and grunts, as though a litter of pigs
was hidden in the cover. This remarkable noise
proceeded from a number of rails,* birds much
like our water-rail but rather more stoutly built,
and with wine-red breasts, barred on the flanks
and belly with black and white. These rails
were very tame, and walked about close to us in a
perfectly unconcerned manner. We never saw

* Eallus dbbotti.

A FLIGHTLESS RAIL 109

one of them fly, or even try to do so : they trusted
entirely to their legs when pursued. In several
patches of bush we came across family parties of
them, and although the young were mostly full-
grown and feathered, we saw several which were
still covered with black down. They were found
on all parts of the island, except on the summit of
the sandy hill on the windward side. While
uttering its remarkable note, this rail stands quite
still and puffs out all its feathers; from what I
observed I should say that the skin of the throat
is also expanded. The notes are loud — a strange
mixture of squealing, grunting and booming —
and during its song the bird appears to be gradually
collapsing, until at the end it is once more of
normal size. I have heard our English water-rail
utter a somewhat similar noise when near its nest,
but its cries are never so loud as those of the
Assumption rail. We caught two of them alive
and brought them safely to England, and they are
at the time I write living in the London Zoological
Gardens.

White-necked crows* were present on the island
in small numbers, and were nesting in the tallest
trees, but I have no doubt that this species has
recently wandered hither from Madagascar or East
Africa.

Leaving the shore we found more open country,
and came across some large turtle doves with brown

* Corvus scapulatus, inhabiting also parts of Africa.

110 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

backs and claret-coloured breasts. These doves,
of which we obtained specimens, proved to belong
to a hitherto undescribed species,* nearly allied to
those inhabiting Aldabra and Glorioso ; they were
remarkably tame, and could almost be caught by
hand. A few were nesting in the branches of the
bushes, and one nest that we found contained a
single newly-hatched bird. Its flight is somewhat
heavy and laboured, and the bird is remarkably
unwilling to take to wing at all, spending most
of its time running on the ground under the
bushes, often in company with the rails, with
which it appears to be on excellent terms.

We had not proceeded far before we heard the
long bubbling note of a lark-heeled cuckoo, |
and soon found the bird sitting in a thick bush near
its nest — a large domed structure built of dried
grasses, and containing two perfectly white eggs.
This " cuckoo," which is, by the way, not a true
cuckoo, builds its own nest and rears its own
young. The Assumption species is closely allied
to the one I have mentioned as seen in the Foret
d'Ambre, but is somewhat larger. Although they
were extraordinarily tame, we were unable to catch
any of them alive, as they rarely left the thickest
parts of the bushes.

The tameness of several of the birds on Assump-

* Turtur assumptions, Nicoll, " Bulletin Brit. Orn. Club," Vol. XVI.
p. 105.

f Centropus assumptions, Nicoll, " Bulletin Brit. Orn. Club." VoL
XVI., p. 105.

TAMENESS OF THE BIRDS 111

tion was noteworthy. At first thought it would
seem to be accounted for by the fact that the
island is uninhabited and very seldom visited;
but if this be the reason, one would expect all the
birds to be tame, which was not the case. Indeed,
a small heron, which proved to be a perfectly new
species,* was so wild that, although we saw a great
number, I was able to shoot only a single specimen.
Also the only small land-bird, a tiny sunbird,|
which is found nowhere else, was by no means
tame. On Saint Paul's Rocks, as I have
mentioned in a previous chapter, one species of
noddy tern is quite tame, while the other is
extremely shy and wild, though there is probably
no island in the world more seldom visited by man.
It would seem, then, that tameness and timidity
in birds are to a great extent specific traits.

Unfortunately, rats have been imported by some
means into Assumption and are now very abundant.
There is little doubt that they devour many eggs
of the rail and of other birds which nest near
the ground, and should the rats increase to any
extent, there is a great danger of these interest-
ing birds becoming extinct in the near future.
All the rats which I shot were of a very pale
coloration, probably due to the nature of the
ground.

On the open ground near the foot of the sandhill

* Butoridea crawfordi, Nicoll, "Bulletin Brit. Orn. Club," Vol. XVI. ,
p. 105. f Cinnyria abbotti, Ridgway.

112 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

we came upon a flock of some twenty goats.
They were of many colours — black, white, grey, and
piebald — and some of the males were remarkably
fine animals. They were excessively wild, and
would not allow us to approach to within any
reasonable distance of them. They were originally
turned out to provide food for any shipwrecked
crew, and, as it so happened, we ourselves were all
but shipwrecked in the neighbourhood of this
island a few days later.

The sea round Assumption swarmed with fish,
and turtles were also very plentiful. At the time
of our visit the latter were in great numbers close
to the shore, where several were " turned." A
number of " nests " was found by following the
turtle tracks in the sand. Some contained fresh
eggs, others were on the point of hatching, and
several newly-hatched young were found.

Robber-crabs were also numerous, and appeared
to be more diurnal in habits than they were on
Glorioso. Many were seen crawling about under
the bushes which fringe the shore. There were
but three coconut trees, and they appeared to
have little if any fruit ; neither was there
any maize, so I imagine the crabs feed on the
young sea-birds. Indeed, they appeared to be
omnivorous, and greedily devoured a rat which I
threw to them.

We landed on Assumption twice, getting ashore
about eleven o'clock on the first day, and spending

WE LEAVE ASSUMPTION 113

about three hours there on the following morning.
Leaving at mid-day on March 13th, 1906, we
steamed to Aldabra, sighting it an hour or two
later.

CHAPTER XII.

ALDABRA ISLAND.

VERY soon after leaving Assumption we sighted
the island of Aldabra.

Aldabra is undoubtedly a huge atoll of very
ancient formation. The coral of which it is formed
is, like that of Assumption, of a deep brown
colour. The lagoon enclosed by this atoll is very
large, with several outlets into the sea, how many
we were unable to estimate in the time at our
disposal. The principal outlet is situated on the
leeward side, and, as the anchorage is marked
on the charts as if it were in the mouth of this
passage, we steamed up and dropped anchor
clear of the tide " rip." The place, however,
proved to be totally unsafe, owing to the rush
of water entering the lagoon. Indeed, the tide
came in with such violence that the " Valhalla "
soon dragged her anchor. We therefore put to
sea again, cruising off the leeward side of the
island until the morning, when a boat was sent
from the shore to pilot us to a much safer and
better spot, not far from the settlement.

ABBOTTS IBISES ON ALDABRA ISLAND.

[114

THE GIANT TORTOISE 115

Aldabra is the home of a huge tortoise,* which
was at one time fairly abundant, but is now
confined to a small area on the northern side.
So difficult is it to get to this locality that we
were unable to see the tortoises in their wild
state. The Hon. Walter Rothschild rents the
island of Aldabra from the British Government
and protects the tortoises as well as a peculiar
species of ibis, so that it is to be hoped
that these interesting creatures may long hold
their own.

A great part of the leeward side has lately been
planted with coconuts, which are now growing
on nearly every patch of sand above high-water
mark. The settlement is composed of a few
wooden huts, inhabited by negroes, who, under
the supervision of an overseer, work in the
coconut plantations and at turtle-catching and
curing. Near the houses grow casuarina trees,
with their beautiful feathery foliage ; they seem
to be the tallest trees on the island, the greater
part of the vegetation being a thick scrub,
relieved occasionally by groups of trees of
a species of Ficus and a few pandani or
screw-pines.

In several parts of the island there are pools
of fresh water, but, like those on Assumption,
they seem to be dependent for their supply on the
rainfall.^ All the water holes near the settlement

* Testudo elephantina.

116 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

were carefully covered over with branches, to
prevent fouling by herons and other wading birds,
which are to be found in great numbers.

Owing to the very shallow water between our
anchorage and the land we were only able to go
ashore at high tide, and we were thus somewhat
handicapped during our short stay, since our time
for collecting was necessarily curtailed.

Early in the afternoon of our first day we
landed on the sandy beach, where we were met
by the overseer, who conducted us to the settle-
ment, about half a mile distant. But our arrival
was followed by a heavy rain, which continued
for the rest of the day, and obliged us to seek
shelter in a house. I was, on that account, unable
to do more than watch several species of birds.
The commonest, and at the same time the
most brilliant, was a weaver-bird,* a tame and
familiar bird which fed in large flocks close to
the houses. It has a brilliant coloration, the
whole of the breast is of a rich scarlet, the
abdomen is yellow, the back greenish with black
streaks, and the rump is again scarlet. A flock
of males presented a striking sight as they
roamed the village in search of food ; all were in
full breeding plumage, and several pairs were
nesting in the casuarina trees which surround the
settlement.

Another familiar bird in Aldabra is the sacred

* Neaacanthis aldabranus.

NUMEROUS BIRDS 117

egret,* an interesting species with two distinct
phases, or forms of plumage irrespective of age
or sex. Wholly white, or entirely blue, examples
are equally common, while one specimen which I
shot was mottled with white and blue-grey, all
the feathers being parti-coloured. These egrets
collect in great numbers round the pools of fresh
water near the settlement, and when disturbed
fly but a little way, quickly assembling again at
the same spot. One can realise what a nuisance
they must be to the inhabitants, so soon do they
foul the scanty supply of fresh water.

A small kestrel and a sunbird were also fairly
common in the casuarina trees ; the latter is
peculiar to Aldabra, though closely allied to the
sunbird of Assumption, from which it differs only
in having more yellow on the underparts.

Doves| also, somewhat similar to those found
on Assumption, were fairly numerous, but the
Aldabra rail was not at all common, and I
only met with two, both of which I obtained
during our stay. The jet black males and grey
females of a drongo shrikef were conspicuous
inhabitants of the bush in the neighbourhood
of the village, but they were exceedingly shy and
difficult to approach.

As the tide rolled in, numbers of shore-birds
left the sandy beach and flew over into the lagoon,

* Demiegretta sacra. t Turtur alddbranus.

J Dicrurus alddbranus.

K

118 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

where they remained until the tide began to ebb.
The commonest and most striking of these was
the crab-plover,* which appeared in enormous
numbers. A few sanderlings were running about
on the water's edge, and so many other birds that
to mention them all would be tedious. The
richness of Aldabra in peculiar forms will be
realized by the fact that out of eighteen species
obtained by us during our visit ten are restricted
to this island, and one other is found elsewhere
only in Madagascar.

We had been looking forward to seeing giant
tortoises in a wild state during our stay, but in
this we were doomed to disappointment. We
found that it would take at least two days to visit
the locality where they are now only to be found,
and as we had not the necessary time at our
disposal, we were reluctantly compelled to abandon
our hopes.")"

Aldabra is also famous for its turtles ; large
numbers are caught annually, their flesh being
dried for export. Trays, shaped like huge sieves,
were arranged in front of the settlement, and in
these a great quantity of turtle-flesh lay exposed
to the sun. The neighbourhood of the curing place
was not at all pleasant, for although the drying
flesh did not smell objectionably, the same could

* Dromas ardeola.

•f This tortoise has been introduced into the Seychelles, where it is
kept in a semi-domestic state, and later on we saw many of them in the
tortoise " farms" in that group of islands.

A GREAT LAGOON 119

not be said for the deposits near by of other parts
of the turtles. Close to one of the houses we saw
a tame frigate bird — belonging to one of the men
employed in the turtle industry — which was in
beautiful condition and so tame that it could be
handled.

We were most anxious to see the Ibis abbotti,
a striking bird much like the well-known sacred
ibis, and also closely allied to the Ibis bernieri
of Madagascar, but differing from both so decidedly
that it has been rightly claimed as a distinct
species, confined to Aldabra, so far as is known.
The overseer of the island informed us that the
bird was seldom seen near the settlement, and
that it nested some miles away across the lagoon
in a part seldom visited. Accordingly early on
the second morning of our stay, we set out from
the yacht in the steam launch for this ibis colony,
taking on board the overseer and a pilot.

The lagoon, which is enclosed by the island or
islands of Aldabra, is very shallow, but for
some miles there is a narrow channel of suffi-
cient depth to allow a boat, drawing several feet
of water, to proceed. This lagoon is of so great a
size that during our passage through it we were
frequently almost out of sight of land. The man
we had taken as a pilot seemed to know every
part of it, and without him we should have been
unable to proceed for any distance. We passed
numerous rocks, the bases of which were so Water-

120 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

worn that they looked like enormous mushrooms.
They were inhabited by noddy terns, which were
sitting on their eggs.

After three hours' steaming, during which we
saw many turtles and sharks, we came into very
shallow water. The tide was ebbing, and we were
forced to take to the dinghy which we had been
towing astern. A row of about an hour then
brought us to our destination, within half a mile
of the place where the ibises were said to be
nesting. The ground here was of the same forma-
tion as that in the neighbourhood of the settle-
ment— a mass of ancient brown-coloured coral
covered with long grass and clumps of bushes.

After a very few minutes' walk we came on a
few scattered pairs of Abbott's ibis feeding on the
margin of a large pool of rain-water. I soon ob-
tained a couple of old birds. Their necks, like
those of the sacred ibis, were bare of feathers,
and the skin was black and wrinkled ; their eyes
were of a pale china-blue. We then came to a
more open piece of country, covered with grass
and intersected by narrow rivulets of water, in
one of which were two young ibises. They were
ridiculously tame, and allowed of such a near
approach that several photographs of them were
taken without any difficulty.

In a clump of fig trees, shortly afterwards
reached, the ibises were very numerous ; many
were perched in the trees, while many more,

RIVER NEAR PORT VICTORIA, MAHK, SEYCHELLES.

(Photographed by E. (1. B. Mcadr- Waldo.) [121

MARVELLOUSLY TAME IBISES 121

chiefly full-grown young birds, were walking in a
pool of fresh water searching for food. In the
middle of the pool several were sitting together
on a bare rock. They appeared to be tame enough
to photograph at close quarters, so I at once
unpacked my tripod camera and set it in position,
using great care not to frighten the birds. This
precaution was, however, needless, for they were
not only quite fearless but so inquisitive that they
waded across the pool, and, coming close up to the
camera, began to peck at the tripod. We drove
them back to the rocks, but before a plate could
be exposed they were back again inspecting the
legs of the camera ; it was only by repeated
threats — a novel experience for them and for us —
that we could keep them far enough away to enable
us to get a series of photographs in proper per-
spective. After this we allowed them to come
close up, and when we had examined them at
very close quarters, we decided to try to catch
one. To our astonishment they would all allow
themselves to be picked up, nor did they show
any signs of fear when released, but merely ran
round our feet plucking at the tags of our boot-
laces. I have seen many wild birds which
showed little fear of man, but have never come
across such extraordinarily familiar birds as these
ibises.

We counted all the individuals we could on this
part of the island, and estimated that there were

122 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

about forty pairs. I should imagine that there are
several other nesting places, but, owing to the great
size of the island and to the difficulties of landing
on most parts of it, we were not able to find another
colony.

While photographing these birds I noticed some
pigeons flying round the clump of fig trees, and
as they appeared to be constantly settling there,
I walked up to the foot of one of the trees to wait
for them. In a very short time I had shot four
examples, which proved to be Alectroenas minor —
a species peculiar to Aldabra. In appearance they
were not unlike the Comoro pigeon, but were
very much smaller. Some young birds were in
their first plumage, which is not only much greener
than that of the adults, but each feather is tipped
with yellowish buff, giving the bird a peculiar
spangled appearance. In the shade of the trees
numbers of robber-crabs were creeping, and they
showed considerable annoyance at our presence,
waving their claws in a threatening manner
whenever we approached.

After a very pleasant time spent amongst the
ibises and pigeons, we walked back to our boat
and put off for the steam launch. The tide had
fallen considerably, and it was a long time before
we made out the launch in the distance. On the
way we landed at a small deserted village, where
half an hour was spent in search of the Aldabra
rail, only two of which were seen. A pair of

A DANGEROUS CURRENT 123

Aldabra doves* was also procured, and then, as
it was getting late, we hurried on to the launch
and steamed away. Darkness fell, however, long
before we sighted the yacht, and had it not been
for our pilot we should have had great difficulty
in getting aboard that night. The water was so
low that it was necessary to keep exactly in the
middle of the channel, a task by no means easy,
for even under the guidance of the pilot we once
missed our way and suddenly found ourselves in
very shallow water, from which we had to make
our way with extreme caution.

Aldabra is undoubtedly of a great age, as is
evidenced by the fact that nearly all its birds have
become differentiated from the nearest allies found
elsewhere. Amongst these the ibis, dove,* and
a nightjarj are, perhaps, the most remarkable.
The giant tortoise is also peculiar, although, as
I have mentioned above, it has been exported to
the Seychelle Islands, where numbers are kept
in a semi-domesticated state.

After leaving Aldabra Lord Crawford intended
to pay a visit to Cosmoledo and Astove, two small
coral islands in the immediate neighbourhood.
As far as I can ascertain, these islands have never
been visited by a naturalist, and they are said to
be inhabited by several species of birds. But
during the night, while steaming to Cosmoledo,
we were carried several miles out of our course

* Turtur aldabranua. | Caprimulgus aldabrenris.

124 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

by a strong uncharted current, and in the pitch
darkness, in which it was impossible to see more
than a few yards ahead, we ran ashore on the
leeward side of Assumption. Here we remained
fast for some twenty-four hours, fixed on the sand.
I shall not soon forget that night. As soon as
we made sure that we were fast, and that the ship
had suffered no harm, I finished off the birds I was
engaged in skinning, then joined my companions in
watching dismally the water as it gradually fell
away from our bows.

At daybreak all arrangements were made to try
to get the ship off at high tide. An anchor was
carried out astern, and as the water rose we
hauled on it, at the same time working the engines
at full speed astern, but to no purpose. All the time,
however, the" Valhalla" was grinding out for herself
a bed in the soft sand, and during the next high
tide she floated off, the captain having previously
lowered all the boats and cables, and a quantity of
coal to lighten her. The yacht was, fortunately,
none the worse, and, as soon as she was shipshape
again, we steamed away for the Seychelle Islands.

Thus the fauna of Cosmoledo and Astove is
still unknown. I feel sure that these two islands
would well repay a visit, as we were told by people
in the Seychelles that they abounded with bird-
life, but should any of my readers ever attempt
to visit them I would suggest that they approach
them in daylight.

CASCADE, MAKE. SEYCHELLES. HOME OF AlectroeUdS

pulcherrima.
(Photographed by Mr. E. G. B. Meadc-Waldo.)

[125

CHAPTER XIII.

SEYCHELLE ISLANDS.

ON 22nd March, 1906, Mahe, the largest island
of the Seychelle group, was sighted, and shortly
afterwards we came to anchor off the town.

Lord Crawford's intention was to take the yacht
round to all the most interesting islands of the
group, but owing to very bad weather the greater
part of this plan had to be abandoned. However,
we spent sixteen delightful days here, and visited
the islands of Praslin and Felicite.

Mahe rises almost perpendicularly from the sea
to a height of about 2000 feet. Deep valleys
run down from the summit to the sea-shore,
and the island is for the most part covered with
forest.

During our stay we were most kindly enter-
tained by Mr. H. Thommasset, who invited us to
his beautiful " Cascade Estate," which is situated
about 1000 feet above the sea. Vanilla was the
principal crop grown at the time, though, owing
to a fall in the price, it is not now nearly so
profitable as it formerly was. For this reason a

126 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

large quantity of rubber-trees were being imported
and planted, and these promised to do well.

Mr. Meade- Waldo and I started out to pay our
visit early one morning. Driving from Mahe
to the foot of the cascade, we engaged two natives
to carry our baggage, and climbing up the winding
pathway to Mr. Thommasset's house — an exceed-
ingly steep ascent — we were immediately rewarded
for our exertions when we reached, just below the
house, a magnificent sheet of water which fell
in a glorious cascade over the brow of the hill
into the valley below. We stood for a time close
to the waterfall, and were deliciously cooled by
the refreshing spray as well as by the draught
made by the rush of the water. From this a few
minutes' walk brought us to the Cascade Estate.
The house, situated on a small plateau, com-
mands a splendid view; the well-wooded ravine,
with its beautiful waterfall, runs sharply down
to the shore, while far away in the haze of distance
rises the island of Praslin, and, nearer, small
islets, covered with vegetation, stand out in clear
relief against the deep blue sea.

Mr. Thommasset's estate is one of the best
places on the island in which to observe birds,
but, unfortunately, indigenous species are few.
A number of different kinds of " foreign " birds
have been introduced, and it is probably owing
to the excessive numbers of Indian mynahs that
the indigenous species are so scarce near the

ALIEN BIRDS A CURSE 127

town ; in fact, the original avifauna is threatened
with extinction. These mynahs have spread even
as far as the Cascade Estate, but in the town itself
they are in such numbers that every garden and
tree is covered with them.

The Madagascar weaver bird* has also, most
unfortunately, been introduced. The history of
this stupid act, as told me on good authority,
is that two neighbours went to law concerning
the ownership of a certain field which each claimed
as his property. The loser, to be revenged on
his adversary, brought from Madagascar a cage
full of weaver birds, which he liberated on his
neighbour's land. In any case, whether this
account of the origin of the birds be true or not,
the effect of their introduction has been that it is
now impossible to grow any rice or grain on
Mahe, and at the present time these " weavers "
are, next to the mynah, the commonest land-
birds.

Nearly all the indigenous land-birds of the
Seychelles are peculiar to the group, and one
species of sunbirdj is found only on Mahe, the
other islands being inhabited by a somewhat
similar species, which differs in that it has the
tufts of feathers on the breast of a fiery-red colour
instead of yellow. Both species are otherwise
dull brownish-grey, and are thus very different

* Foudia madagascariensis.

t Cinnyris mahei. "Bull. B.O.C.," VoL XVI., p. 106.

128 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

from the brilliantly-plumaged sunbirds of Africa,
which in general coloration are perhaps even more
beautiful than the majority of humming-birds.
Dull coloration is characteristic of other birds of
the Seychelles. The white-eye* is of a dull
brownish-grey instead of being bright yellow and
green, as are the majority of the species of this
genus, while the Seychelle parrot f is also greyish-
brown with but a faint tinge of yellow. The
Madagascar and Comoro parrots, however, are
similar in this respect. It is remarkable that on
this group of islands there should be three such
dull-coloured species belonging to genera noted
for their bright-coloured species. Possibly this
is the effect of isolation for a very great time,
and these birds may be the oldest members of
the avifauna of the Seychelles.^

During the night spent at Cascade Estate I
made several unsuccessful attempts to shoot a
small owl, which was calling continually through-
out the night in a large tree just outside the
house. This owl — Gymnoscops insularis — Mr.
Thommasset informed me he frequently heard,
and occasionally saw as it flew by day when
driven out of its hiding-place amongst the rocks
or hollow trees. A small kestrel § appeared to
be not very abundant, but I think that it may be

* Zosterops modesta. f Ooracopsis bnrTdeyi.

% The Seychelle Islands are like St. Paul's Rocks, of neither volcanic
nor coral origin.

§ Tinnunculus gracilis.

5-

P

TORTOISE FARMS 129

more so than a casual visitor would imagine,
for it is extremely tame and will sit for hours
motionless and hidden amongst the thick foliage.

A fine fruit-pigeon* is not uncommon on the
higher parts of the Seychelle Islands. This bird
is also exceedingly tame, but, unlike the kestrel,
it loses rather than profits by its fearlessness.
It is good to eat, and being readily caught by
means of a noose fastened to a long stick, it falls
an easy victim to natives, by whom the flesh is
greatly esteemed. The bird much resembles the
previously mentioned pigeon of the Comoros,
but is somewhat larger and has a deep crimson
crown.

In the grounds of Government House we saw
a large number of Aldabra tortoises enclosed
within a stone wall. Some of them were of large
size, and a great many were newly hatched. We
were informed that they bred freely in confine-
ment, and that the young grew very quickly.
These tortoises are used for food by the natives,
and on visiting the market we saw several tethered
by the leg and exposed for sale. On all the
islands and inhabited islets of this group there
were tortoise-farms. We were astonished to
find how easily these huge creatures were able to
climb. On Felicite, for instance, there was a
walled enclosure, one side of which was formed
by a high mass of rock, and the tortoises were

* Alectroenas pulcherrima.

130 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

climbing over this or lying at rest on narrow
ledges.

In nearly all these farms the tortoises bear a
number which is painted in white on the shell.
Many farm-owners keep a record of all their
stock, while at Government House a complete
register is made with the dates of hatching and
so forth. In the latter place we rode upon the
largest tortoise. This creature was of a fierce
disposition, for with outstretched neck and every
appearance of anger he attacked all who ventured
near him, and we were told that he would bite if
allowed the opportunity. All these tortoises have
been imported from Aldabra, and there are now
probably considerably more individuals on the
Seychelles than on the former island.

After we had spent about a week on Mahe
the ship steamed across to Praslin, about twenty
miles distant. We anchored in Curieuse Bay,
an inlet of Praslin, and sheltered by the island
of Curieuse, which lies close on the other side of

a narrow channel.

/

A short walk on shore during our first afternoon
was not productive. There were fewer birds
than on Mahe. A paradise flycatcher* of the
size of a sparrow, but jet black, with the
central tail-feathers prolonged to a great length,
was the most interesting bird seen. It is known
locally as the " veuve," or widow, but apparently

* Terpsiphone corvina.

A RARE PARROT 131

it is not common, as during our stay only two were
met with. A thrush, or " bulbul "* is by far the
most abundant land-bird on Praslin, as it is also
on most of the other islands of the group. Its
notes are among the most unmelodious sounds I
have ever heard. All day long it pours forth
harsh shrieks. Several of them were brought
home alive, and regularly every morning at day-
break they would begin to scream, rarely ceasing
before sunset. In captivity they are of a most
quarrelsome disposition, though in a wild state
they are usually seen together in parties of from
two to twenty individuals.

One of our chief objects in visiting Praslin was
to get a specimen of the black parrot. | These
birds are strictly protected by Mons. E. Boulle,
the owner of a greater part of the island, and
through his kindness we were able to see this rare
bird in a wild state. It is now only to be found in
one locality, where, close to Mons. Boulle' s house,
numbers come to feed on the flowers of a magnolia
tree. To this tree we made our way, but the only
birds we could find on our arrival were numbers
of thrushes and sunbirds. I shot two of the
former and one of the latter ; while packing them
up a native came to tell me that he had just seen
two parrots higher up the hillside. I started off,
but after spending a short time wandering
about amongst bushes, a most unlikely place for

* Ixocincla craaairoatris. f Coracopsis barUeyi.

132 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

parrots, I descended the hill again and took up
my station under the magnolia tree. After an
hour's interval I heard a musical whistle,
reminding me of the call of the Madagascar
black parrot, and, to my delight, the coveted bird
came flying straight to the tree. A minute later
it was in my hand ; it proved to be immature,
and though full-grown, was not so dark as an
adult. The general colour of its plumage was a
sooty-brown with a yellowish wash on the chin
and throat, and a distinct greenish sheen on the
wing. As no more parrots appeared, we started
back for the ship. I was told by one native that
he had never seen more than ten of these parrots
together at a time, but Mons. Boulle assured me
that he had quite recently seen " a hundred "
sitting together in this particular magnolia tree,
which is the only one of its kind on the island.

Next day we steamed across to Felicite, a
small island given over to the cultivation of
coconut trees, with which it is for the most part
covered. We were conducted over it by the
owner, Mr. Birgne. The most interesting bird
here was the fruit-pigeon of the same species as
that found on Mahe. It was extremely abundant,
owing entirely to the care Mr. Birgne had taken
to preserve it. He told me that he never allowed
it to be caught or molested in any way.

On returning to Praslin we landed in Marie
Louise Bay, at the foot of the " Coco de Mer "

** COCO DE MER," PRASLIN ISLAND, SEYCHELLES.

[132

THE COCO DE MER 133

Valley, and spent the afternoon amongst these
remarkable double-coconut trees, which are
found in a wild state nowhere except in this one
small valley. They are not so tall as the common
coconut trees, but the leaves are much larger
and of a great breadth. The fruit is of immense
size, somewhat resembling a huge double-coconut,
and is said to take many years to ripen ; its kernel
is of a grey jelly-like substance, and the taste
is very insipid — far inferior to that of the common
coconut. The principal use to which the nut
is put is for the manufacture of bowls for water
or food ; the shells, when split in half, make
capacious basins or dishes, and are largely used
by the natives of India for rice.

The first description of the Coco de Mer was
given to some of the fruit found floating in the
open sea, which was supposed to belong to a sea
plant, and so received the name of "Coco de Mer."
When the Seychelles were discovered, the fruit
of these trees in Praslin was found to be identical
with that of the co-called Coco de Mer. Many
of the trees have now been introduced into Mahe,
bub their growth is exceedingly slow, and, so far
as I know, they have not as yet borne fruit.

During the night the yacht lay at anchor at
the foot of the Coco de Mer Valley, and early in
the morning we started for North Cousin, a small
islet to the south and east of Praslin. As we
made our passage the wind rose ; rain fell in tor-

L

134 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

rents, and it became impossible to see more than
a few yards ahead. For an hour and a half every
sign of land was blotted out, although there were
islands on all sides ; in fact, the wind increased
to such a degree that when the weather finally
cleared our position was found to have remained
practically unchanged for over an hour, although
the ship had been kept at full speed. The sea had
risen so high that landing upon Cousin Island
became an impossibility, and we were forced to
return to Mahe. Several more days were spent
at anchor during incessant rain ; frequently
a squall would spring up without warning,
and several times the " Valhalla " dragged her
anchor.

On one occasion we had a visit from King
Prempeh, who is kept in exile on Mahe. He came
on board in full native dress, though some per-
suasion was required before he would discard the
top hat and frock coat in which he usually appears.
Prempeh seems to be treated far better than he
deserves, for if all reports are true, he was one of
the most bloodthirsty tyrants that ever existed ;
and I must say that his appearance does not belie
this, for a more repulsive-looking creature I never
saw. Of immense bulk, with small head and low
retreating forehead, he was not prepossessing as
he waddled about the deck. A phonograph
and pianola amused him exceedingly, and when
an iced drink was given to him he took the

COCO DE HER," PRASLIN ISLAND, SEYCHELLES.

[135

FAREWELL TO THE SEYCHELLES 135

liveliest interest in it, though he must have seen
ice during his " residence " in the Seychelles.

The day before we left Mahe Lord Crawford
gave a " garden " party on board, which was
attended by nearly all the inhabitants ; we thus
had an opportunity to bid farewell to our good
friends before we sailed in the early morning for
Aden, en route for home.

L2

A VOYAGE TO THE WEST INDIES.

&MO$

CHAPTER XIV.

MARTINIQUE.

ON December 18th, 1903, the " ValhaUa " sailed
from Cowes for the Canary Islands, en route to the
West Indies.

On 5th February, 1904, we dropped anchor at
Port de France, which has been, since the
destruction of St. Pierre, the principal harbour
of Martinique. Our object was to obtain permis-
sion from the Governor to visit the ruins of St.
Pierre, which was destroyed by an earthquake
on 8th May, 1902.

It may be well to mention that the destruction
wrought by the volcanic eruptions at Martinique
and St. Vincent was not nearly so complete as
many appear to think. It seems to be supposed
that these islands suffered to such an extent
that their peculiar species of birds became extinct
at the time of the volcanic disturbances. This
is not so, for in both islands the only damage
done was in the immediate vicinity of the
volcanoes ; thus, on St. Vincent only a very small
portion of the country has been destroyed; the

140 VOYAGES OF A NATUEALIST

grass and other vegetation in 1904 was again
showing over the sides of the Soufriere.

On St. Vincent the fine parrot — Chrysotis
guildingi — which is found nowhere else in the
world, has not yet become extinct, and is still
found in some numbers on the high peaks.

On Martinique the havoc caused by the eruption
was more serious, inasmuch as St. Pierre, its
principal port, was entirely destroyed with its
inhabitants.* Little damage, however, has been
done to the surrounding country. The trees on
the top of a neighbouring range of hills have
been burned, but the country at the foot of these
hills is quite untouched. Several villages within
a couple of miles of the city are quite uninjured,
and are inhabited ; the sides of the hills up to
within a short distance of the summit are covered
with vegetation, and show no signs of injury.

The country round Port de France is almost
entirely cultivated — sugar being the principal
crop — even to the tops of the peaks. We were
informed that, owing to this excessive clearance
of the trees, the rainfall has been considerably
lessened, and at times there is a considerable
shortage of fresh water. A strict law has, I believe,
now been passed against the felling of timber.
Owing to this scarcity of trees, the land-birds

* There is a story that one man, a black, was rescued from St. Pierre
owing to the fact that, being in a prison cell underground at the time,
he escaped the choking ashes which covered the town. I do not vouch
for this story, but mention it as it was related to us in other islands of
the West Indies.

ST. PIERRE 141

are by no means numerous, and the only ones
seen were a few starlings,* grass finches,")" and
flycatchers. J

At one time most of the islands of the West
Indies were inhabited by peculiar forms of
parrots, while several parroquets inhabited the
larger islands. Many of these are now extinct,
including the macaws, of Jamaica, and at the
present time the parrots of St. Vincent, St. Lucia,
Dominica, the Cayman Islands, Cuba, and Bahamas
are the only living representatives of this group.
No parrot or parroquet is now to be found on
Martinique, and this is scarcely surprising, as there
are no forests existing there of sufficient size to
offer a home for these birds.

The Governor of Martinique having kindly
granted us permission to land at St. Pierre, we
steamed round to that place on 7th February.
The whole town has been completely destroyed,
and that part which was situated at the foot of
Mont Pelee is buried under the ashes and debris
from the volcano.

The anchorage has not been disturbed in any
way, so that we steamed up close to the shore
and dropped anchor in the once prosperous har-
bour. Lowering a boat we landed, and started
off for a walk, or rather a scramble, through the
ruins of the town. The largest wall standing was

* Quisccdus inftexirostria. f Euethia bicolor.

Elainea martinica.

142 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

that of the cathedral. All the other buildings
had completely collapsed, though in some places
a few feet of wall still remained in an upright
position.

The ruins of the town were becoming covered
by a creeping plant bearing scarlet flowers, while
bread-fruit trees were shooting up amongst the
broken-down houses and even in the streets.
The main street was still discernible, and,
although one's passage was blocked by debris
in many parts of the smaller thoroughfares, it
was quite easy to walk over a great part of the
town. The effects of the earthquake were such
that the walls of nearly all the buildings fell
inwards ; the whole of the roof and the tops of
walls of the cathedral have fallen inside the
building, and the same is the case with nearly all
the houses.

A number of persons were searching amongst
the ruins for anything valuable or curious, and
from one of them I bought a small blue glass
tumbler which had been made shapeless by the
fierce heat to which it had been exposed. One of
my companions purchased a small " Crown Derby "
coffee cup and saucer for a shilling. One of our
sailors found a quantity of wire nails run together
into a solid block, weighing, perhaps, a couple of
pounds, and several similar bundles were offered
to us. One man was " hawking " a marble figure
of Venus, while another offered us a bust of the

THE RUINS OF THE TOWN 143

Pope, both quite undamaged by the heat, and
showing no signs of having been buried in the
ruins.

During our visit the top of Mont Pelee was
completely hidden by clouds of smoke, which
had been pouring out ever since the eruption.

A few birds were seen amongst the ruins of the
town. We were informed that during and shortly
before the disturbances on Martinique and St.
Vincent, enormous flocks of pigeons* appeared
on the island of Grenada, where they remained
for a fortnight. During the eruption, and for
several days afterwards, quantities of dust fell
over many of the islands, especially the Barbados,
where it was collected in bottles and sold to
visitors.

* Columba fquamosa.

CHAPTER XV.

GRAND CAYMAN ISLAND.

AFTER leaving Jamaica on 8th March, 1904, we
laid our course for Grand Cayman, the largest
of the three islands of the Cayman group, which
lies to the west of Jamaica.

The Cayman Islands have been but rarely
visited by naturalists, and as they are inhabited
by many species of land-birds which are found
nowhere else, we looked forward to spending an
interesting time there.

Grand Cayman, Little Cayman, and Cayman
Brae form part of the Colony of Jamaica, and
are said to have been discovered by Columbus on
his return voyage from Portobello to Hispaniola
(now Hayti), and were named by him Las
Tortugas, owing to the number of turtles which
abound on the coast. The present name is
supposed to be derived from caiman — an alli-
gator, which Grand Cayman somewhat resembles
in shape when viewed from the east.

Grand Cayman is about seventeen miles in
length, and from four to seven miles in breadth.

VEGETATION AND INHABITANTS 145

On the northern side is the " Sound " — an
expanse of shallow water about six miles in
length off George Town, the capital. Ships, as
a rule, find this the best anchorage, although its
advantage somewhat depends on the prevailing
winds.

The island is well covered with vegetation,*
the largest trees being mangroves, which here
rise to a considerable height, while a low growing
species of palm provides useful material for
thatching and the manufacture of baskets, etc.
Like the smaller islets of the group, Grand Cayman
is composed of coral, and in no spot is it many
feet above the level of the sea. There is, however,
in most parts sufficient soil for the cultivation of
sugar cane, sweet potatoes, and other plants,
and in many places there is • a luxuriant growth
of grass which is used as pasturage for a small
number of cattle. Poultry and pigs are also
reared, and besides providing food for the in-
habitants, are occasionally shipped to neighbour-
ing islands.

The inhabitants of the Cayman Islands are,
I believe, descended from bucaneers who at one
time made these islands their headquarters.
They are of a fair complexion, and those who
live at a distance from the port are extremely
hospitable. A number of small schooners have

* An orchid, said to be peculiar to it, grows in quantities on Grand
Cayman.

146 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

been built on Grand Cayman, and are used for
trading between the islands of the group and
Jamaica. The principal trade is in turtles, which
are for the most part caught on the coasts of the
mainland, and brought to Grand Cayman, where,
until required for shipment, they are kept in an
enclosed portion of the Sound.

We arrived off George Town too late in the
afternoon to go ashore the same day, but early
the following morning we landed and called on
the Governor, His Honour F. Sheddon Sanguinetbi,
who most kindly gave us a special permit to collect
birds. The time of our visit corresponded with
the close time for wild birds, and a law for their
protection is very properly enforced.

Having been provided with a guide in the
shape of a small native boy, one of my companions
and I started off for a long walk into the interior.
Before we had gone far from the settlement we
became greatly struck by the abundance of bird
life. In no other island in the West Indies did I
see such numbers of so many different kinds of
birds as on Grand Cayman. In each patch of
vegetation we came upon fresh species, and we
were very soon busily engaged in observing and
collecting them.

Most of the land-birds are peculiar to the
island, though there are a considerable number
of immigrants from America which spend the
winter there, and one, at least, of these appears

FEMALE LEAF-INSECT, SECOND GENERATION, BRED BY
MR. W. H. ST. QUINTIN, FROM EGGS LAID BY INSECTS
'BROUGHT HOME ON "VALHALLA" FROM SEYCHELLES.

(From a Photograph kindly supplied by Mr. W. H. St. Quintin.)

[146

CROWNED WARBLERS 147

to have established itself as a resident species.
This is the crowned warbler,* a small bird of a
dull greyish-brown above, white below, with a crest
of yellow feathers. Two other species of this genus
are found on the island, and one — Dendrceca
auricapilla — which is very common on Grand
Cayman, but is found nowhere else, is a most
handsome little bird of a beautiful golden canary
yellow, with the crown of the head tinged with
chestnut. We found it close to the settlement,
where small flocks were flitting about through the
trees and bushes. Nearly all the West Indian
Islands possess species closely allied to the Cayman
golden warbler, but the latter surpasses all others
in the purity and brilliance of its colouring. The
other species — Dendrceca vitellina — is smaller and
of less brilliant coloration, the general plumage
being greenish-yellow slightly streaked on the
sides of the neck with black. This bird is also
peculiar to Grand Cayman, and it is in-
teresting to note that another warbler — Dendrceca
discolor — an American species, much resembling it,
though perfectly distinct, is a winter visitor.
A pleasant surprise awaited us later, for on
Little Cayman yet another species of this genus
was found, and this one proved to be new to
science.

On cannot walk far on Grand Cayman without
seeing the almost grotesque-looking black ani, or

* Dendrceca coronata.

148 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

cuckoo. This bird is extremely abundant, as it
is in some of the other West Indian Islands, and
also in Brazil. Several individuals are usually
seen together, and they roam over the pasture
land in follow-my-leader style, uttering a
monotonous bubbling cry. They are said to be
partial to the company of cattle and sheep, and
to relieve them of their ticks, but I cannot vouch
for this on personal observation. Usually they
were, when feeding, sitting together in a flock on
the grass, amongst the roots of which they were
apparently searching for insects. They are of
about the size of our cuckoo, but jet black in
colour, though old examples in fresh plumage
have a bluish sheen on the upperparts. The bill
is peculiarly shaped, being deep, with the upper
mandible strongly arched. Common though these
birds are, I believe that little is known of their
nesting habits. Several females are said to lay
their eggs in the same nest, but they do not, like
true cuckoos, deposit their eggs in the nests of
other birds.

Another and more handsome cuckoo was
Coccyzus maynardi, of about the same size as the
black ani, but of totally different coloration,
the upperparts being clove-brown, the tail blacker,
and edged with white and black, and the underparts
buffish white. This bird did not appear to be so
abundant as the ani, and during our stay we saw
but one example.

A RARE PARROT 149

Mocking-birds* and Carolina thrushesf were
very common, and we also shot specimens of a
handsome woodpecker { peculiar to the island,
and one of the tamest birds I have ever seen.

Grand Cayman is the home of a species of parrot §
found nowhere else. We wished to obtain
specimens of this bird, but were told that they
were all gathered together in the tallest mangrove
trees on the north side, to which they retired for
nesting, but as soon as they had finished breeding
they were to be seen in numbers all over the island.
Several were brought alive on board, and some
were purchased for about six shillings apiece —
a very low price for such a rare bird. I could not
get any wild specimens near the settlement, so
I arranged to go over to the north end for them.
As I had but twenty-four hours at my disposal,
I had my doubts as to whether I should even see
any parrots. However, I resolved to try, and
accordingly the Governor placing a guide at my
disposal, we set out late one afternoon, and after
a drive of some miles arrived at our destination
shortly before dark. Here we obtained rooms
in a farmhouse, where I was considerably cheered
by the information that a number of parrots had
been seen close by a few hours before.

At daybreak next morning we started for a long
walk to the nearest belt of mangrove trees. For

* Mimus orpheus. f Galeoscoptes carolinensis.

J Melanerpes caymanensis. § Chrysotis caymanensis.

M

150 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

several hours we saw no signs of either mangrove
trees or parrots, and I began to think that our
journey had been in vain. Presently, however,
we reached a small farm, where we stopped for
a short time at the invitation of the owner. This
man told me that every morning, shortly after
daybreak, the parrots came down to his land to
feed on the fruit of the guavas, and that only an
hour ago he had seen several. We thereupon
started off again, and after an hour's walk came
up to the mangroves, a belt of tall trees about
half a mile in length. Before we reached them
the discordant cries of the parrots were plainly
heard, and presently a party of them flew across
the path. We entered the wood, and, after wait-
ing a short time, I shot a fine adult bird. It was
very handsome, the feathers of the upperparts
being green, edged with black, the forehead white,
and the underparts of a rich crimson, banded
with black.

We obtained two more parrots on our way back,
and finally got on board the ship late in the after-
noon after a most successful and enjoyable ex-
cursion.

It is somewhat remarkable that Grand Cayman
should have a peculiar form of parrot, while Little
Cayman is inhabited by a Cuban species. This,
however, is one of many cases in which isolation
produces a new form or species. Some species
of birds appear to change more rapidly than

ISLAND FORMS 151

others. The Cayman Islands offer some good
examples of this, for apart from the two species
of parrots, Grand Cayman has a peculiar starling,*
while Little Cayman is inhabited by the Cuban
species, t and, as already mentioned, both islands
have peculiar forms of warblers. There are
several other equally interesting cases. On the
whole, the avifauna of the Cayman Islands seems
to be nearest to that of Cuba, though a new species
of tyrant flycatcher, J which was found by us on
Grand Cayman, is more nearly allied to a species
found on the Bahamas.

On 13th March we left Grand Cayman, and
steamed to Little Cayman, off which we anchored
early the same afternoon.

* Quiacalu* caymanenaia f Q. guncttochi.

J Pitangus caymanenaia. "Ibis," 1904, p. 582.

M 2

CHAPTER XVI.

LITTLE CAYMAN ISLAND.

LITTLE CAYMAN ISLAND is considerably smaller
than the main island of this group. It is of the
same formation, but the centre is partly covered
with mangrove swamps.

Lord Crawford had not placed this island in
the original programme, but he was anxious to
obtain a series of specimens of a small gannet,
none of which the British Museum possessed. This
bird was supposed to be found only on the Cayman
Islands, but we could not obtain any on Grand
Cayman, and decided to visit this smaller island
where, as we were informed, great numbers bred.

The winds on Little Cayman are variable. At
the time of our visit the anchorage we chose on
the lee side was the most sheltered, though it is
often impossible to anchor there, in which case
ships have either to anchor off the settlement
in somewhat rough water or stand off and wait
for the wind to drop.

Some of the inhabitants having seen the yacht
approaching, were waiting for us when we landed,
and on being questioned as to w^here the gannets

A GREAT GANNET COLONY 153

were, they at once offered to take us to their
haunt, which proved to be close to the settlement
and about three-quarters of an hour's walk from
our anchorage. The way led through a thickly-
wooded country, but after a time we emerged
into a plantation of coconut trees, the fruit of
which forms the main product of the island, and
shortly afterwards we reached the settlement — a
group of wooden cottages thatched with leaves of
the coconut palm.

The sea was dashing on the shore within a few
yards of the village, behind which was a large
mangrove swamp, where we discovered the nesting-
place of the gannets. Their numbers were in-
calculable ; thousands upon thousands were flying
round overhead ; streams of them were coming
from the sea ; and every tree was covered by them.
Frigate birds were also very abundant, and they
doubtless secured plenty of food, for the gannets
were most cowardly ; directly a frigate bird
appeared they dropped the fish they were carrying
and made off with harsh cries of alarm.

The breeding season appeared to be nearly over,
and, as the night was fast approaching, it was
necessary to obtain such specimens as we required
without delay. At the first shot the air was filled
with an immense number of birds, and their
clamour as they whirled overhead was deafening.

The nests were mere collections of sticks in
the branches of mangrove trees. A few of them

154 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

contained young birds covered with white down,
but most of the young were flying overhead in
company with their parents. After climbing up
to several nests we succeeded in finding two eggs,
which were of a white chalky texture. After
obtaining as many birds as we required we started
on our walk back to the ship.

Early next morning we landed again and walked
towards the " gannetry." Our chief object was
to get specimens of some of the land-birds. In
this we were successful ; amongst the number of
small birds shot during the morning I obtained
three specimens of a new species of warbler.*
Most of the other land-birds we met with were
similar to those found on Grand Cayman.

The only mammals we saw on the Cayman
Islands were rats, which have been introduced,
and one bat on Grand Cayman. Reptiles were
equally scarce. A snake t was obtained on Grand
Cayman, but was not seen on Little Cayman.

During the first night I spent some hours fishing
from the deck of the yacht, and, although I caught
nothing, I never remember seeing so many fishes
together. The sea appeared to be full of them,
and as they darted about they left flashing
phosphorescent tracks behind them.

At mid-day we steamed away from Little
Cayman, and shaped our course for Havana.

* Dendrceca crawfordi. "Bull. B.O.C.," Vol. XIV., p. 95.

f Dromicus amgulifer.

A VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD.

CHAPTER XVII.

MONTE VIDEO AND THE STRAITS OF MAGELLAN.

DURING this voyage, on which we started on
November 19th, 1902, we were unable, for various
reasons, to visit the island of South Trinidad.
After a stay a Bahia, we sailed for Monte Video
and the Straits of Magellan.

On 9th January, 1903, in Latitude 24° 23'
39" S., Longitude 40° 1' W., a number of the two
species of Trinidad petrels, which I have described
in a previous chapter, followed the ship for three
days. At this time I was extremely anxious to
get specimens of these birds, but, owing to the
rough weather we were experiencing, it was
impossible to lower a boat. Thus I was in the
exasperating position of seeing within a few yards
of the ship a quantity of birds quite unobtainable,
of which very few specimens existed in collections,
for these two species of petrel had hitherto been
found only on the island of South Trinidad.*

* Since the above was written a single specimen of (Eatrelata armin-
joniana has been obtained off the West Indies (c/. " Bull. B.O.C."
XIX., p. 98).

During our third voyage as previously related, we landed on South
Trinidad and obtained a fine series of these interesting Petrels.

158 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Three days later, in Latitude 33° 29' 33" S.,
Longitude 50° 3' 47" W., the first albatros* was
seen.

I may here mention that, though many attempts
were made in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian
Oceans, we never caught an albatros on a line.
We subsequently came to the conclusion that they
will not take a baited hook unless they are very
badly in want of food. Possibly we were sailing
at too great a speed, but a long line was used,
and the bait was kept motionless on the water
for as long a time as possible. When hove-to off
Tristan da Cunha, Captain Caws and I spent hours
"fishing" for sooty albatroses, but although several
of these birds took the bait in their bills, they
would not swallow, and usually dropped it im-
mediately. This is, I know, not the experience
that others have had with albatros " fishing,"
as several friends have since assured me that these
birds are easily caught.

The next day the giant petrel f was seen. In
size this fine bird equals several of the smaller
species of albatroses, and when on the wing it
much resembles the sooty albatros, but its yellow
bill serves to distinguish it. Occasionally, almost
entirely white examples of the giant petrel are
met with, but we only once saw one. It is now,
I believe, well known that the attacks which have
often been reported as having been made by

* Diomedea exulans. f Ossifraga gigantea.

ASHORE AT MONTE VIDEO

albatroses on sailors, who have fallen overboard,
are in fact attributable to this species.

Early on the morning of 14th January we
anchored off Monte Video. Owing to the shallow
water the " Valhalla " had to lie about two miles
distant from the town, and on account of this we
made but one excursion into the country.
Travelling by rail to the small town of Los Piedros,
we walked into the country, which is mostly flat
pasture land for miles round. Quantities of
large blue-flowered thistles covered the country.
An interesting account of these thistles is given
by Darwin. He says : — " There is little good
pasture, owing to the land being covered by beds
either of an acrid clover or of the great thistle ;
in some parts they were as high as the horse's
back, but in others they had not yet sprung up.
When the thistles are full-grown, the great beds
are impenetrable except by a few tracks, as
intricate as those of a labyrinth. These are only
known to the robbers, who in this season inhabit
them, and sally forth at night to rob and cut
throats with impunity. Upon asking at a house
whether robbers were numerous, I was answered
' The thistles are not yet up ' — the meaning of
which reply was not at first obvious."

During our stay here some time was devoted
to fishing from the ship. Examples of two species
were caught, one of which proved to be new to
science, and has since been described under the

160 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

name Corvina crawfordi. This fish was exceedingly
abundant, and we were much surprised to find
that it had not previously been named.

On 20th January, having taken a pilot for the
Straits of Magellan, we left Monte Video, but as
the day advanced we had to drop anchor, owing
to a very strong head wind, and for the remainder
of that day and the next we lay to. From this
time onward it became much colder, and we were
glad to get into winter clothing. This, however,
only applied to the temperature at sea — on
land in the Straits of Magellan, the furthest south
we reached, the air, although fresh, was certainly
not colder than during a fine April in England.

On 22nd January the first diving petrels were
met with. These curious little birds were con-
tinually rising under our bows, flying a few yards,
and dropping suddenly into the sea, when they
immediately dived. This diving petrel — Peleca-
noides urinatrix — is exceedingly abundant through-
out the whole of the waters of the Straits of
Magellan. In appearance it reminds one forcibly
of the little auk, being glossy black above and
white below. The throat is speckled with grey,
and a white band crosses the wings. The wings
are very small and weak ; the bird, doubtless, is
losing the power of flight. A second species was
met with a week or two later in the Bay of
Valparaiso. This was Pelecanoides garnoti, which
differs from the former species chiefly in being

PENGUINS AT SEA 161

larger and having a broader white bar on the
wing.

In the Southern Indian Ocean a third species
of this peculiar genus inhabits the coasts of the
Crozette Islands, and extends to Kerguelen Land,
while during the third voyage of " Valhalla,"
in 1905-6, we obtained specimens of a fourth and
previously undescribed species at Tristan da Cunha.

Penguins* were also seen during the same day,
as well as later, after we had entered the Straits.
Most of those seen at sea were lying on their sides
with one leg out of the water, a characteristic
attitude of these birds as well as of other members
of the genus, the nearly-allied 8. demursus of
South Africa and the adjacent islands being
frequently seen in a similar position.

A few days later we shot a Magellan penguin
for our collection. I shall not readily forget the
great difficulty I had in skinning this bird.
Between the skin and the flesh lay a mass of oily
fat more than half-an-inch thick, in which were
embedded the stiff quills of the breast feathers.

We afterwards found that just before the moult
the Cape penguins,")" coming up from the sea
enveloped in fat, remain during the moulting season
on shore, and never enter the water. As soon as
the moult is finished they are quite thin, and then
proceed to sea for a month before returning to
breed.

* Spheniscus magellanicus. f Spheniscus demursus.

162 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Later in the evening of this day we entered the
Straits of Magellan, and after passing a jutting
point of shingle, called Dungeness Point, a name
which reminded us forcibly of home, we anchored
in Possession Bay. Early next morning we
weighed anchor, but, owing to a very strong head
wind, we were not able to make any way, and were
obliged to anchor again.

During the day two curiously-marked porpoises
played round the ship. They were pure glossy
white excepting the head, tail, and dorsal fin,
which were black. Comparatively little is known
of the porpoises and dolphins of the southern
oceans, and these may very likely have belonged
to some undescribed species, but all our attempts
to harpoon them were unsuccessful.

At eight o'clock next morning, the wind having
dropped, we started westwards and passed through
the first " narrows." Three hours later we steamed
close past St. Elizabeth and St. Magdalena
Islands, formerly famous for the large number
of kelp geese which bred on them, and thence
onward through the second " narrows." In these
" narrows " enormous numbers of sea-birds —
terns, skuas, albatroses, and diving petrels — were
seen. Of these birds perhaps the most noteworthy
was the skua,* as from this time until we reached
Valparaiso this species was continually encountered.
The country, as seen from the ship, was, from

* Megalestris chilensis.

CONDORS AND STEAMER-DUCKS 163

the east of the Straits to Punta Arenas, bare and
sandy. Here in the desert were numbers of
huanacos,* large parties of them were standing
close to the shore. Unfortunately, we had no
opportunities for landing, and had, therefore,
to be content with a distant view of these
animals.

As soon as Punta Arenas — the only town in the
Straits of Magellan — is reached, the aspect of the
land entirely changes ; mountains and trees take
the place of the desert, and on every side one gets
the impression of fertility. The large trees, of
which these forests are composed, are of two
species : the deciduous Antarctic beech| and the
evergreen beech, J the former being by far the
more abundant.

While passing through the first " narrows " a
fine, if distant, view was obtained of three condors, §
which were sailing, or rather circling, round a wall
of rock close to the water. This was the only
occasion on which we saw this magnificent bird,
and from what we heard, I fear that it is not
nearly so abundant as it was a few years ago,
but what has caused the decrease it is difficult to
say.

The steamer-duck || has also undoubtedly de-
creased in number of late years. It cannot now
be called abundant — the description given by the

* Llama huanacos. f Fagus antarcticus. % F. betuloides.
§ Sarcorhamphus gryphus. \\ Tacky erea cinereua.

164 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

early voyagers — though many may still be seen
throughout the western portion of Magellan
Straits and in Smythe's Channel.

The condor may have been shot down by
shepherds, of whom there are now numbers ;
but the decrease of the steamer-duck cannot be
ascribed to human agency, as all the vast tract of
country bordering the waters of Smythe's Channel,
in which these birds are found, is practically
uninhabited except by Fuegian Indians ; and,
although very few of these people were to be seen,
we found no vestige of duck-remains either in their
boats or in their deserted camps.

l

o g

^ o1

S-iS
2
* a,

CO ""

CHAPTER XVIII.

PTJNTA ARENAS, STRAITS OF MAGELLAN.

AT mid-day we anchored off Punta Arenas, or
Sandy Point, a town which is rapidly becoming
of importance, not only because it is the only town
in the Magellan Straits, but also because of the
very large number of sheep raised in the im-
mediate neighbourhood, from which a quantity of
wool is shipped to England. I am indebted to
Messrs. Jacomb, Son & Co., wool brokers, of
London, for the following facts regarding the Punta
Arenas wool clip.

" The wool is practically all from cross-bred
sheep, varying in quality from fine half-bred to
coarse Lincoln, the bulk being coarse. The
quantity of wool exported to the United Kingdom
is, roughly, from 30,000 to 40,000 bales yearly,
and nearly all goes to London for sale. This
wool shows yearly marked improvement, and is
nearly equal to the best New Zealand clips. It
is in good demand from buyers of all nation-
alities. After being sold by public auction, part
of it is shipped to the United States of America,

N

166 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Germany, France, etc., while rather more than
half remains to be forwarded to English manu-
facturing centres."

The greater part of the country about Punta
Arenas is covered with virgin forest, except
certain large tracts which have been cleared for
pasture land. Clearings are made by firing the
trees, and during our stay there was a forest fire
continually raging ; indeed, it had been doing so,
we were told, for more than a month, and its
blaze on a windy night lit up the whole town
magnificently for our view.

I walked through some of the cleared parts
of this forest. The ground was covered with a
thick, rich-looking grass, studded here and there
with bushes of berberis. There appeared to be
two, if not three, kinds of berberis in these
Straits.

The most numerous species of birds about the
town were a chat-like tyrant-bird,* the adult male
of which is chestnut brown, with a black head and
underparts, and a small kestrel. I also saw and
obtained specimens of a bunting, | a fly catcher, +
and a martin§ ; the last-named resembles our
house-martin, except that it has no feathering on
the tarsi or toes. ||

* Centritea niger. f Zonotrichia canicapilla.

J Elainea cUbiceps. § Tachycineta meyeri.

|| I have frequently obtained in Sussex autumn specimens of our
house-martin (Chelidon urbica) with these parts bare of feathers, but in
these cases the feathers had doubtless been worn off.

THE EXTINCT GROUND-SLOTH 167

One of my first excursions at Punta Arenas
was a long walk on the shore towards a small
iron lighthouse, which marks the eastern ex-
tremity of the point. Hundreds of terns,* the
commonest sea-bird in this part of the Straits,
were met with. A few siskins| were also seen ;
but the commonest land-bird was the above-
mentioned Centrites, which was in great numbers,
most of them being young birds.

Chilian skuas were chasing the terns. Several
" quail-snipe "J were met with, feeding on a strip
of grass close to the sea. This remarkable bird
resembles a sandpiper in form, but it has a bill
like that of a quail. A goose, probably the kelp-
goose^ and the southern black-backed gull were
also noted.

In several shops in the town the skins both of
mammals and of birds were exposed for sale.
These skins were worthless as specimens, as in
all cases the bones of the legs had been removed.
Cormorants 1 1 and rheas^f were shown, but the
most interesting exhibit was a piece of skin of the
extinct ground-sloth (Mylodori), a portion about
four inches long and two inches broad, with much
of the hair still attached. On enquiring the
price I was asked £50. This piece of skin had
been found with other remains in a cave, several

* Sterna hirundinacea. f Chrysomitris barbatus.

J Thinocorus rumicivorus. § Chlotphaga magdlanica.

|| Phalacrocorax atriceps. ^ Rhea americana.

N2

168 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

miles east of Punta Arenas, and not far from the
shore of the Straits.

This giant ground-sloth appears to have
inhabited the shores of the Straits of Magellan,
and quite recently it was believed that specimens
were still living in Patagonia. This, however,
is most unlikely, as the Patagonian natives live
almost entirely on the money they obtain for the
skins of the wild animals of the country, and they
regularly bring their collections of skins to Punta
Arenas for sale. If the mylodon were still in
existence in a living state, these natives long ago
would have been aware of the fact, and have
brought in specimens for sale.

One afternoon the Governor, Captain Gomez,
invited us to visit some coal mines which had just
been opened, and we gladly availed ourselves of
the opportunity. We travelled up to the mines,
about five miles distant, in a light railway. The
track was laid through a fine forest of Antarctic
beech trees, and in a stream which ran through
this forest several men were searching for gold.
The coal mines were situated in the forest at an
altitude of about 500 feet above the level of the
sea. The mouth of the shaft was at the foot of
a low cliff and we went in on a truck, lying on our
backs. It was a curious sensation, rushing down
into the tunnel, which was on a slight slope.
We soon came to the " working," where the coal
was being hewn out and loaded into trucks. The

A COAL MINE 169

mine had but recently been opened, and the
Governor could not say whether it would pay or
not. The coal seemed remarkably brittle. Close
to the entrance of the shaft I found a number of
oysters embedded in the black clay, and succeeded
in digging out a perfect specimen.

We afterwards spent a delightful hour in the
forest. Birds were extremely scarce,* and we saw
little else besides a small tree-creeper,"]" a bird
afterwards met with in most of our anchorages
in the Straits of Magellan and in Smythe's Channel.
Although it has a tail composed of stiff feathers
like our well-known creeper,J it does not seem to
climb the trunks of trees like that bird : those
we saw were hopping about the trees like tits.
It is a familiar little bird, and follows one
through the forest, continually uttering its shrill
cry.

On 3rd February we left Punta Arenas, having
been delayed for twenty-four hours, owing to a
slight breakdown in the engine room, and pro-
ceeded westwards. At seven o'clock the same
day we anchored in Port Gallant anchorage,
about eighty miles from Punta Arenas.

Ships going through the Straits have to anchor
every night, owing to the difficult and dangerous
passages. All through the Straits and Smythe's

* Insects are less numerous in the country bordering the Straits
than are birds, and during the whole passage through, the only insects
I saw were a bee and two beetles.

f Oxyurua spinicaudata. J Certhia familiaris.

170 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Channel are natural harbours, where ships can
anchor with safety. These anchorages were a great
pleasure to all of us, for as soon as the ship came
to one of them a boat was lowered, and we set off
to visit some of the beautiful islets with which
the Straits are studded.

In Port Gallant we had our first view of
steamer- ducks. Seeing two ducks sitting on the
water we steered towards them, when, to OUT
delight, they " got up steam " and raced away.
In different accounts we read of the various ways
in which this duck is supposed to propel itself
through the water. The older accounts say that
it uses its " tiny wings as paddles " and " rows
itself through the water." It was then called the
" racehorse-duck." During our passage through the
Straits we paid much attention to this subject,
and came to the following conclusions : — when
alarmed, steamer-ducks at once run away over the
water, flapping their wings (which are not nearly
so " tiny " as those of the Guillemot in proportion
to the sizes of the birds), and travelling at an almost
incredible speed — in fact, almost as fast as an
ordinary duck can fly. The feet of the bird are
large and strong, the muscles enormously developed.
The wings, although not of sufficient size to raise
the bird completely from the water, are able
to lift the body clear of the surface, so that the
feet come into play, when, by running on the water
and flapping their wings, the birds race so fast

THE STEAMER-DUCK 171

that a six-oared boat is never able to get within
gunshot of them while they are moving.

It has been stated by some authors that the
immature steamer-ducks are able to fly ; again,
others say that there are two species, one volant
and the other flightless. Personally, I never saw
one fly, though one of our party, Major Wilbraham,
did see one rise from the water and fly away.

Of this bird Professor Cunningham writes * : —
" It was first noted by Pedro Sarmiento, in
1582. Penethy, Byron, and Cook gave it the
name of " racehorse-duck." Later, however,
Captain Kingf changed this name to that of
steamer-duck. He also observed that certain of
these ducks had volant powers, and thought that
he distinguished two species, recognisable both by
size and plumage — the flying birds he called
patachonicus, the non- volant birds brachypterus."
Professor Cunningham further states his belief
that there is but one species, and that the volant
birds are immature examples, as all the flying
birds that he examined anatomically showed
signs of incomplete ossification of their bones.

All the examples we obtained, and all those
I have examined in the British Museum, un-
doubtedly belong to one species only ; and if I
may venture to give an opinion, I should say that
Professor Cunningham's is undoubtedly the right

* Transactions of the Zoological Society of London.

t Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1830-1, p. 15.

172 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

solution, as it would surely be an almost un-
precedented thing to find two very nearly allied
species living together, one able to fly and the other
unable to do so. At the same time, it is somewhat
remarkable that, although we saw examples of
this duck of all ages and in all stages of develop-
ment, we met with but one which was able to fly.
It may be that this species is gradually becoming
entirely flightless, and that the volant individuals
met with are survivals of a former stage in a state
of transition, and have not as yet lost the full
power of flight.

A fine pair of adult steamer-ducks which we
obtained, weighed respectively 9J and 10 pounds
(a young bird with downy wings was only 5 pounds
in weight). I, therefore, cannot believe that this
species can ever weigh, as has been stated, as much
as 20 pounds. The gizzards of all those examined
by us contained broken fragments of the shells of
mussels.*

In Port Gallant anchorage we saw a large flock
of surface-feeding ducks, but were unable to obtain
specimens. Some dotterel")" — a southern repre-
sentative of the bird which nests now so rarely
on the hills of the north of England and Scotland —
were feeding on the edge of a large fresh-water
lagoon, and I shot two young examples. A black-
bird;]: was also obtained — a bird in first plumage,

* Mytilua magellanicus. f Eudromiaa modesta.

$ Turdus magellanicu*.

A BEAUTIFUL BAY 173

in which state it much resembles the young of
our blackbird, except that it has a black cap.
This bird was met with frequently later on in
Smythe's Channel, and was, in fact, one of the
few land-birds seen there. Its melancholy
whistle was to be heard continually ringing out
over the otherwise silent fjords towards sunset.

At daybreak the next morning we left Port
Gallant, and, proceeding westwards, anchored
towards evening at Churruca Bay, which is the
most western anchorage in the Straits of Magellan.
This place is one of the most beautiful that it has
ever been my good fortune to see. Towering
peaks, covered from summit to base with im-
penetrable beech forests, almost encircled the
deeply indented bay, the water of which was inky
black, and the surface smooth as glass. Here
and there were little islets, some fringed with a tall
white-flowered plant ; others surrounded with
hedges of fuchsias in full flower. Flock after flock of
Magellan cormorants flew by us, their white breasts
flashing bright against the dark water of the bay,
while steamer-ducks scudded to right and left,
as we glided to our anchorage in the glorious
natural harbour.

As soon as the anchor was down we had two
boats lowered. A long chase after steamer-ducks
proved unsuccessful. The birds dived at the least
alarm, to reappear far out of shot, and escaped
over the water with their curious flapping " run."

174 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

On one island the remains of an encampment
of Fuegian Indians was seen ; this consisted of
a few " wigwams " built up with branches, and
outside them a large heap of mussel shells — of
natives there was no sign.

Afterwards, when we were under steam, the
people themselves brought their canoes alongside,
but when we were on land they kept out of
our way, disappearing in a wonderful fashion.
Major Wilbraham one day saw a canoe-load of
them land in one of these harbours, and, wishing
to try to converse with them, he steered his boat
for the same place. When he arrived, however,
he found that people, canoe, and all had vanished
into the forest, and by no amount of searching
could he find any trace of them.

The food of these people is composed almost
entirely of mussels, which are very plentiful in all
these waters.

CHAPTER XIX.

SMYTHE'S CHANNEL — GULF OF PENAS — VALPARAISO.

EARLY on the morning of 5th February we left
Churruca Bay and entered Smythe's Channel.
The scenery in this channel is even more beautiful
than that of the Straits of Magellan. Mountains,
covered with primeval forest, tower high on
both sides, while the water, smooth and of an inky
blackness, is dotted with islands of all sizes.
Unfortunately, these splendours cannot be seen
to advantage, on account of the execrable climate
of this part of the world. All the winter it is said
to be snowing continually, and during the five days
we spent in the channel it rained continuously,
while a perpetual mist veiled the snow-topped
peaks.

To wander through the dripping forests was not
pleasant. At the best of times they are almost
impenetrable, owing to the thick vegetation,
but when at every step one was met with a shower
of water falling from the trees and bushes, the dis-
comfort was great.

Soon after mid-day, a boat-load of Fuegians

176 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

appeared in front of us, and as the ship was slowed
down, they came alongside, and after a little
persuasion came on board. They soon made
friends with the crew, and the pilot, who knew
their language, talked to them. They at once
began to bargain for biscuits, etc. All they had
to offer in exchange were the well-worn otter skins
with which they were clothed. They readily
divested themselves of these and implored us to
give them biscuits, tobacco, and matches : the
latter they seemed to understand perfectly. We,
of course, gave them a plentiful supply, and they
went away quite happy.

It appears that whole families travel about in
one canoe, in which they go from island to island
in the channel. In the canoe a fire is kept con-
tinually burning, and if this should go out, these
poor people are in a bad way, as, owing to the
dampness of the wood, it is almost, if not quite,
impossible to kindle fire by friction.

Owing to the greatly reduced number of these
natives, Tierra del Fuego, which was so named
on account of their custom of signalling by fire,
can hardly now be said to be appropriately
named.

The same evening we anchored in Port Dixon,
where the night was spent, and sailing at daylight
next morning we arrived towards evening in
Puerto Bueno harbour. Here we visited a large
fresh-water lake, which our pilot assured us was a

A BARREN LAKE 177

" fine place for ducks." A fine place it undoubtedly
is, but as for ducks, there were none. In no place
have I been more struck with the entire absence
of life than in the immediate surroundings of this
lake. Although the country appeared to be per-
fectly suited to birds and animals, the only living
creatures we saw were a single bird, a creeper
of the species I have previously described, and
one small toad* found on the margin of the lake :
this was in an immature state, black, striped with
yellow.

After leaving the lake we took to the boats
again and landed on a small island. On the rocky
shore some oyster-catchers were feeding, but they
were extremely shy, and we were unable to get
within shot of them. A tiny humming-bird was
fairly numerous, and several were seen perched
on the bare tree-tops. At least two species of
humming-birds have been recorded from the Straits
of Magellan, but I was unable to identify the
examples we saw, as no specimens were obtained.
It seemed strange to meet with humming-birds
on the chilly coasts of the Magellan Straits : one
always associates them with the tropical portions
of America.

We also saw and shot a large railf which in size
and colouring resembles our moorhen, but has a
long curved bill somewhat like that of a curlew
in shape, but on a much smaller scale. It is only

* Nannophryne variegata. f Rallus vigilantis.

178 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

found on the shores of the Straits of Magellan
and Smythe's Channel, and is somewhat rare in
collections.

A fine male kelp-goose was seen on this island.
This species — Chloephaga magellanica — is re-
markable in that the males are white while the
females are grey, banded with black. The Governor
of Punta Arenas gave us two little goslings of
this goose, but they died as soon as we got into a
warmer latitude.

On the rocks which border the shore, in most of
the anchorages in Smythe's Channel, an interesting
bird — the Cinclodes patagonicus — was seen and
obtained. It is somewhat like a dipper in action,
as it runs over the rocks searching for insects. On
several occasions one of these birds came into the
boat as we were rowing about the harbour, and
showed little fear, remaining perched on the side
of the boat for a minute or more.

When we reached the ship at dusk, wet through
with the continuous rain, we heard that a canoe-
load of Indians had been to pay a visit during our
absence.

The following day we reached Molineux Sound,
and after we had anchored, the rain ceased, the
sun appeared, and we much enjoyed the first fine
afternoon we had experienced since leaving Punta
Arenas.

Molineux Sound differs somewhat from the
other anchorages we visited, the country being

MOLINEUX SOUND 179

much more open, less wooded, and not nearly so
mountainous. One small valley in the immediate
vicinity of the harbour was occupied by a chain of
reed-girt lakes, rising one above the other like a
series of lochs. On each side of the valley the
gentle slopes of the hills were covered with shrubs
and low beech trees.

Though this appeared to be an ideal place for
land-birds, we met with very few, and these
were of two species only — a large hawk,* and a
pair of the Magellan thrushes. The scarcity of
animal life on the shores of Smythe's Channel
has been previously mentioned by Captain
Macfarlane.| Sea-birds were, however, fairly
numerous, cormorants being the most abundant,
though steamer-ducks were not uncommon. We
here saw a brood of downy ducklings of this
species, which, though apparently not many days
old, scudded away over the water at such speed
that, although my boat was rowed by six men,
we were unable with all our exertions to get within
shot. The ducklings were accompanied by their
parents, which swam round the boat, quacking
in alarm, but they kept well out of shot, and only
occasionally showed themselves above the water.
Most of the time during which they were sub-
merged their bills were visible above the surface
of the water.

The steamer-ducks appear always to frequent

* Milvago chimango. f <?/• " Ibis," 1887, p. 201.

180 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

the growth of kelp-weed, which grows in profusion
round the rocky islets in the Straits of Magellan
and Smythe's Channel. Amongst this weed they
obtain their food, which consists entirely of mussels
of two species.* Some of these mussels grow to
a large size, and we frequently found shells measur-
ing up to six inches in length.

In Molineux Sound two examples of the diving
petrel were obtained. Other petrels are strong-
flying ocean birds, but this species trusts entirely
to its diving powers for means of escape when
pursued. Its flight is weak and short : the bird
soon drops back to the water and at once
dives. When skinning this bird, one cannot
fail to be struck by the curious formation of the
gizzard, which is soft and flabby, and is, in fact,
merely an enlargement of the proventriculus.
All those I examined were crammed with small
fishes.

In each anchorage throughout these channels,
a trammel net was set, and in most of the harbours
we had good catches of fish. By far the most
numerous appeared to be a species of grey mullet.
Small sharks were also caught and preserved,
while one specimen of Aphrites gobio was obtained
and brought home in spirits. This fish has an
enormous head, out of all proportion to its small
body. In the Straits of Magellan some large spider-
crabs were caught, several of which were as much

* Mytilua magellanicus and M . patagonicus.

TIERRA DEL FUEGIANS 181

as two feet across from claw to claw. These
crabs are excellent eating, being far superior to
any lobster we had ever tasted.

On 8th February we left Molineux Sound.
During that morning two canoe-loads of Indians
came alongside. In one of these I saw the head
of a deer, which I bought for three biscuits. It
proved to be the head of a " huemule," and,
although too decomposed to skin, I managed to
save its skull, but this was washed overboard
during the fearful weather we encountered in the
Gulf of Pen as. After a little persuasion the
natives came aboard. They were wretched-
looking creatures, little more than four feet ten
inches in height, with long straight black hair,
cut square across the forehead, while their faces
were almost repulsive, and their otter-skin clothing
was worn and scanty.

Through our pilot I learned that they had
caught the " huemule " with the aid of their dogs
— fearful looking mongrels — which they had in
the boat with them. Before they left these strange
people completely divested themselves of their
otter-skin clothes, which they presented to
Captain Caws ; then, caring nothing for the most
inclement weather, they cast off the leather thong
which held their boat to the gangway of the ship,
and rode away, naked, to the shore. It was thus
that we saw the last of these Indians, the exter-
mination of whom is but a matter of a short time.

o

182 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

We were informed* that they are annually carried
off in numbers to a large missionary station not
far from Punta Arenas, where they soon die from
the effects of civilization. Every year, we heard,
they become fewer and fewer, and there can be
no doubt that in a comparatively short time the
natives of Tierra del Fuego will be a race of the past.

An hour later we passed Eyre Sound, and
afterwards for several miles the water of the
channel was full of broken ice, which had originated
from a neighbouring glacier. This was our
only experience of steaming through ice. The
ship was obliged to proceed at " dead slow,"
and, for several hours, blocks of ice of various sizes
were grinding and crashing against our bows.
Many of these miniature icebergs contained rocks
and masses of earth, while, during our passage
through them, many streaks of paint from the
ship's side were left on their surfaces.

Looking up Eyre Sound we had a splendid view
of a glacier, a mass of ice and snow, extending
upwards for several thousands of feet. Late on the
same afternoon we entered water free of ice, and,
towards sunset, anchored in Eden Harbour.

The weather, as usual, was wet, and a thick mist
hung over the mountains. We rowed up the
harbour to the mouth of a small river. Here
geese were more plentiful than in the other

* This information was given us by our pilot, a man who had spent
many years in these waters, and whose information always proved
reliable.

EDEN HARBOUR 183

anchorages visited. I saw but one species —
Chloephaga poliocephala — which is one of the most
handsome geese in the world. It is about the
size of the well-known Egyptian goose, and
somewhat resembles it in the coloration of its
upperparts ; the underparts are white, barred on
the flanks with black, and the breast is encircled
by a broad band of bright chestnut-red. In this
harbour we met with another kind of cormorant
— Phalacrocorax vigua — which, is, I believe, the
species found so abundantly in the roadstead at
Monte Video. This being so, it is rather remark-
able that we did not meet with it in the Straits
of Magellan.

In Eden Harbour we saw a steamer lying on
the rocks, and were told by our pilot that it had
been wrecked a few months previously. In
many parts of Smythe's Channel we saw such
wrecks, and I believe that in few parts of the world
is navigation so difficult and dangerous as in these
waters ; there are so many offshoots from the
main — and only navigable — channel, that it is
necessary to know the passage very well to get
through with safety. Fortunately, both the
Straits and Smythe's Channel are well provided
with natural harbours, where ships can anchor
with perfect safety.

In nearly all these harbours there are numbers
of boards, on which are painted the names of the
ships which have anchored there, nailed to the

o 2

184 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

trees near the shore, thus completely disfiguring
the beauty of nature.

In many parts of Smythe's Channel otters*
were met with. These animals nearly always
sink when shot, and we had some difficulty in
obtaining the single specimen which we brought
home. They were usually seen in parties of
three or four, swimming about among the kelp
weed close to the shore. In this thick growth
of weed it was not so difficult to retrieve them
when shot, as the strands of kelp prevented
them sinking before the boat's arrival.
Superficially, this animal is much like our well-
known otter, but the fur is perhaps slightly darker
in colour, and rather thicker. Several of the
parties of Indians we met with in this channel
had the remains of otters in their boats, and the
whole of their clothing seems to consist of the
skins of this animal. How they kill them I do
not know, but it may be that their dogs catch
them. I saw no arrows or any other weapons
in their canoes. The Patagonian natives use
bow and arrow to obtain their skins, but, from
all accounts, they appear to be more of a hunting
race than the Fuegians.

On the morning of 9th February, we passed
through the " English narrows." This is the
most difficult part of the channel, as there is only
room for one ship to go through at a time, and

* Lutra patachonica.

A DANGEROUS CHANNEL 185

the current is so strong that it is necessary to pro-
ceed at full speed. Blowing our steam whistle,
to warn any ship that might be coming in an
opposite direction, we steamed through. On
either side of us the mountains towered so high
and so close that one almost imagined they were
within a stone's throw. Exactly in the centre of
the narrows there lay the remains of a steamer
which had been wrecked some time before, and
we seemed to be carried straight for this by the
current, but when close to it we swept aside
and steamed safely through.

Early in the afternoon we anchored in Gray's
Harbour, our last anchorage in Smythe's Channel,
and here a most delightful afternoon was spent.
Birds were more abundant, and examples of
several species were shot. A grebe,* much
resembling our little grebe, or " dabchick," in
appearance, was shot by Lord Crawford. This
was the only time we saw a grebe in either the
Straits of Magellan or Smythe's Channel.
Cormorants of the three species mentioned pre-
viously were seen in large numbers. Steamer-
ducks were also fairly common, and one, the finest
we had yet shot, was obtained by Lord Crawford.
I landed alone on a projecting arm of the
harbour, and forced my way through the forest.
The undergrowth was composed entirely of prickly
berberis bushes, while the ground was strewn

* Podiceps americanus.

186 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

with the rotting remains of fallen trees, which,
from their appearance, had probably lain there
for many years. Without having experienced it,
I should not have realized how difficult it was to
walk — even a few yards — through the undergrowth.
I was considerably surprised when, as I stepped
on an apparently sound tree which had fallen across
the path, the whole tree-trunk as well as the ground
beneath it, crumbled away. The next minute I
was buried up to the waist in decaying wood.
This happened very frequently, so that great
care had to be taken to avoid a serious
accident.

While extricating myself from one of these
rotten tree-trunks, I suddenly saw in front of me
a bird* which I had not hitherto met with. In
appearance it somewhat resembled a wren with an
enormously long tail. It was too close to shoot
with a large-bore gun, such as I was armed with,
and, in spite of all that I could do to frighten it
away to a reasonable distance, it refused to move.
All my attempts to secure it were unsuccessful, and
I was obliged to leave the place without obtaining
it. I was very anxious to get a specimen, as the
bird is rare in collections, so I went back to the
ship for a small-bore gun, and was successful
in finding and shooting another of these birds,
only to see it fall amongst dense bushes and
decayed wood, in which it was utterly lost.

Early the next morning we sailed from Gray's

* Sylviorthorhynchus desmursi.

A GALE 187

Harbour, and emerging from the smooth waters of
Smythe's Channel we entered the stormy seas of the
Gulf of Penas. A gale was blowing in our teeth, and
although going at full speed for twenty-four hours
we covered a distance of only fifteen miles. All
night long the screw was racing, and the water was
breaking over the bows of the ship — a most un-
pleasant change from the smooth and easy passages
we had enjoyed previously. Skinning birds I
found to be quite impossible, owing to the pitching
of the ship, and, although a good sailor, I have
never experienced a more uncomfortable time.
During this gale albatroses were sailing over the
stern of the ship, their wings spread and almost
motionless against the wind.

Soon after mid-day on 14th February the coast
of Chile was sighted, and during the afternoon
we entered the Bay of Valparaiso. The sur-
roundings of Valparaiso, as seen from the harbour,
are bare and desolate in the extreme. There is
little vegetation, and the whole country has a dry
and barren appearance. Far away in the distance
we could see the outline of the Andes.

Most of my time here was spent in cruising
about in the bay, in our steam launch, in quest of
sea-birds. Land-birds are scarce, owing to the
fact that they are shot by the Chilians for food.
Sea-birds are far more numerous, and in the bay
we met with several interesting species. Perhaps
the most striking was a pelican,* which was in

* Pdecanua thagus.

188 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

numbers amongst the shipping in the harbour,
where it was quite tame and allowed of a near
approach. The fact that it is plentiful and tame
in the harbour may be accredited to protection
by law. Outside the harbour we found it very
shy and wary, and for some days we tried in vain
to shoot one for the collection. Gulls, terns,
and petrels were also very numerous in the bay.

The very handsome Franklin's gull,* in general
appearance much resembling our well-known
black-headed gull, and having the whole of the
underparts of a beautiful rosy pink,t was
numerous in the harbour. This pink colour,
which is also found on the feathers of the under-
parts of many other gulls and terns, does not show
in dried skins. I pulled several feathers from the
breast of one of the gulls and placed them in an
envelope, which was at once put inside a book,
but in spite of these precautions I found that after
a week the feathers had turned quite white — a fact
which shows that the disappearance of the pink
colour is not due tof adingfrom exposure to the light.

On the day of our arrival we saw large
flocks of grey phalaropes sitting on the smooth
waters of the bay. Later on, when cruising about
in the launch some miles from the shipping, I
met with small parties of these birds, and one
specimen was obtained. The bird breeds in the

* Larus franklini.

t Very old examples of our Larus ridibundus have the breast
suffused with pink after the spring moult.

SEA-BIRDS AT VALPARAISO 189

high north, and occurs in England on " passage "
during its migrations, which extend as far south
as Chile and New Zealand.

Richardson's skua, another sea-bird well known
off English coasts, was also obtained at Valparaiso.
We were somewhat surprised to see this species
so far south, as it had not previously been recorded
from this latitude. It varies considerably in
coloration, some examples being dark chocolate-
brown on the breast, while others are white. A
specimen of the latter " phase " was shot.

Every evening great numbers of petrels of two
species came in close to the shipping. The more
common was a dark brown bird, and this proved
to be Puffinus griseus, which is an occasional
visitor to England; the other was Puffinus
creatopus, a somewhat rare bird. The former was
seen every evening in vast numbers — in fact,
so many came into the bay of an evening that the
water was literally black with them.

A few giant petrels were noticed, and they
deserve special mention, owing to the fact that
they are one of the most voracious of sea-birds ;
nothing seems to come amiss to them in the way
of food. The example we shot was feeding
greedily on a dog, long dead ! As we had not
previously obtained a specimen of the bird, it was
taken on board and skinned. I shall not easily
forget it, not only on account of its fearful stench,
which seemed to penetrate to all corners of the

190 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

yacht, but also because of the remarks of my
companions, which were scarcely complimentary,
either to me or to my " specimen."

Round about the shipping were numbers of
fishes, and it was a most interesting sight to see the
pelicans feeding on them. All day these huge birds
remained perched on the buoys, but towards
evening they flew round the harbour in search of
food. They wouid fly in circles round a shoal of
small fishes, and every now and then one would
suddenly close its wings and plunge head foremost
into the water. As soon as it appeared on the
surface again, the pouch under the bill was seen to
be enormously extended with fish, which were
then swallowed in a somewhat leisurely manner.
Frequently, however, a black-backed gull* ap-
peared on the scene, and, settling on the pelican's
head, endeavoured bo extract the fish from its
mouth. We could not be certain if the gull ever
succeeded in stealing anything in this manner,
but from the frequent attacks of this kind made
by the gulls, there can be little doubt that they
often succeed in robbing the larger bird of its
prey. The pelicans, however, did not seem to
resent this treatment in the least.

At length, after several unavoidable delays,
we left Valparaiso, and, falling in with a local
" trade wind," we got under sail, and proceeded
westwards, bound for the South Sea Islands.

* Larus dominicanus.

CHAPTER XX.

EASTER ISLAND.

FOURTEEN DAYS after leaving Valparaiso, Easter
Island, the " Mystery of the Pacific " was
sighted.

Easter Island is 2300 miles west of Chile, and,
though it is comparatively well known by repute
on account of the huge images, hewn out of lava,
that are to be found in many parts of the island,
especially near the sea shore, it has been very
seldom visited.

This Island was first discovered by Roggewein,
a Dutch captain, on Easter Day, 1721. Roggewein
states that on first landing he was surrounded by
several thousand natives. Cook, during his second
voyage, estimated the number of inhabitants as
700. This, however, would appear to be an
under-estimate, as in 1860 they are said to have
numbered 3000. Mr. A. A. Salmon, after many
years' residence on the island, states that during
the years 1850-60 the population was nearly 20,000 !
Various other statements as to the numbers of
Easter Islanders have been made by other writers

192 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

so it would seem that no absolute " census " can
be given with any accuracy.

It is said that in 1863 the depredations of slavers
had reduced the population to one-half, and later an
epidemic of measles wrought further havoc, so that
by 1868 only some 900 inhabitants remained. In
1872 there were only 295, and ten years later only
150, while at the time of our visit the population
was not more than 100. Of these several informed
us that they had all been imported from Tahiti, to
work at the sheep and cattle which are now bred
on the island. It has been stated that after the
epidemic of measles, between 1863-68, the
remainder of the population was carried off to a
Mission Station. Therefore it would seem that our
informants were correct, and that the present
population of Easter Island are "imported."

When we arrived the weather was rough, and
we were unable to lower a boat, and but for the
fact that Lord Crawford had taken the mails
from Valparaiso for the inhabitants, we should
no doubt have sailed away without landing.
Fortunately, however, the people on shore saw
the yacht, and sent a surf-boat out to us, and by
this means we were able to go ashore.

We were only there a very short time, and in
consequence were unable to see many of the
interesting caves and carvings which abound on
the island ; and this was especially unfortunate,
as practically nothing is known of the former

HUMAN SKULLS FROM EASTER ISLAND.

(From a photograph of two imperfect specimens in the Author's possession.)

LAVA STATUES 193

inhabitants, while the fauna and flora, such as
they are, have never been collected.

There are now two Easter Island images in
the British Museum. The images, we judged,
are on an average at least twenty feet
in height, while some of them are probably
considerably more. They have been hewn out
of the lava in one or more of the craters on
the island. In one of the smaller of these
craters, Major Wilbraham saw several statues in
an unfinished condition, the features being carved
on the surface of the lava. It would seem,
therefore, that the outline of the statue was first
carved, and that the block of lava was afterwards
cut out and carried by some unknown means
down to the coast, where it was set upright, facing
the sea.

Apparently all these images are alike in general
appearance. The carving is rough: it represents
a human face with a very large and prominent
nose, a rather protruding mouth, a pointed chin,
the forehead narrow, and the brows beetling.
(Fig. 1.)*

Each statue is mounted on a platform of loose
blocks of lava, and these platforms seem to be
ancient burial-places. All the stones with
which the platforms are built are of the size of a
man's head, perhaps slightly larger, and they are

* This and the following seven figures are from rough drawings
made by Major Wilbraham during our visit.

194 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

arranged in the form of a rough square of about
the dimensions of an ordinary dinner-table ; in
the centre of each platform there is a hollow
space.

Soon after we first landed, one of the party

Fio. 1. — Lava Image.

noticed a fragment of a human skull lying near
one of the statues, and, on enquiry, we were told
that the skull had come from one of the plat-
forms. Our informant added that there were
human remains in all the piles of rocks at the
foot of the images, and that, if we liked, he would

HUMAN BONES 195

tell the rest of the natives to collect a quantity
of bones for us. This same man — a native of
Tahiti, who had been on Easter Island for several
years — told us emphatically that the bones were
on the island when the present inhabitants first
arrived there from Tahiti.

We, of course, accepted his offer, and, on our

return to the landing
place a few hours after-
wards, we found a large
stack of bones awaiting
us. We ourselves ex-
amined several of the
FIG. 2.— Lava crown for statue, platforms, and in each

one there were remains

of human skeletons. Some were complete, and
some consisted only of a few small bones, such as
vertebrae or ribs. Many of the bones were in good
condition, but others were much decayed, and
showed signs of having lain in these graves for
a very great length of time.

So far as we could discover, only one body was
buried in each platform. The body seemed to
have been placed in its grave in no special position
— at least, the bones were all together in a pile,
though possibly the body may have been placed
in a crouching position, a supposition borne out
to a certain extent by the fact that the spaces in
the platforms were of no great size.

All the bones collected were carefully packed

196 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

and taken on board, and are now in the British
Museum. Mr. T. A. Joyce has examined this
collection and has most kindly placed his notes on
the subject at my disposal. I have made several
extracts from them and owing to his courtesy am
able to give a fuller account of all that is known
of this interesting island than would otherwise
have been possible. A series of forty-nine skulls
was brought from Easter Island by Capt. -Lieu-
tenant Geiseler, after the visit of the German
gunboat " Hyane " to the island. Geiseler ob-
tained several of the skulls himself either from
the " platforms " or from specially built mortuary
chambers. He stated that the " platforms " were
used by the present inhabitants as burial places,
and adds that this practice was in vogue at the
time of his visit ; and that the natives were in the
habit of removing the bones as the bodies decayed
to make room for further burials, leaving only the
skulls.

After a careful examination of the skulls brought
back by us, Mr. Joyce finds in them distinct
evidences of a Melanesian type, and he naturally
describes this as a most surprising find in an
island so far removed from Melanesia ; his words
are, " and considering the remoteness of Easter
Island from Melanesia of the present day, this fact
in itself is sufficiently puzzling and interesting."

We were informed by the overseer of the island
that the present inhabitants were imported from

SKULLS 197

Tahiti,* and if this be the case it is difficult to
account for the presence of Melanesian types in
the skulls found on the island, unless, indeed,
the original inhabitants of Easter Island were
totally unconnected with the Polynesian race.

The huge images set up on a platform of stones,
arranged so as to form a covered chamber or
vault, seem to point to these having been in-
tended to mark a burial place. In fact, it is
difficult to imagine for what other purpose they
were erected.

The portions of skulls from which the accom-
panying photograph was taken are in my posses-
sion and are crumbling with age.

Caves were seen and the stone houses ex-
amined, during our visit, by Major Wilbraham,
who has kindly supplied me with the following
short description of them, and the carvings they
contain. It is much to be regretted that, owing
to the short time available, Major Wilbraham
did not have sufficient opportunity to make an
even more thorough examination. In company
with Doctor Macdonald he spent a night ashore,
as guest of the overseer, Mr. Cooper, and the
following are extracts from his journal : —

" March 13th. — Macdonald and I got up early
and rode to the top of the crater, which is called
on the map Rano Kao. This is perfectly circular,

* The present inhabitants are in appearance pure-bred Polynesians
and possess the handsome features of the Tahitians.

P

198 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

seven hundred feet deep, and two and a half miles
round, while the bottom is covered by a marsh.
Part of the way down the crater are a series of cliffs

FIG. 3. — Plan of stone house at the lip of the crater of
Rano Kao.

each of which has a cave-dwelling entrance, but

we had no time to examine these.

" We rode to the south-west or sea-side of the

crater, where the lip was broken away into the

sea, and looks on three rocky islets.

" There are just on the lip a number of low stone

houses facing the sea. In plan they are narrow
ellipses (Fig. 3), the walls and
roofs being built of shallow,
undressed slabs. The door-
ways are very narrow and low.
The floors are clay, but as
there is at present only about

FIG. 4. — Carved stone.

four feet headroom, they were
probably once lower. I found an oval smooth
stone, about ten inches long, with a scratched

STONE HOUSES AND CARVINGS 199

device (Fig. 4). The rough boulders outside were
covered with figures, not ungraceful, generally a
female form in a curved position, sometimes
with a sort of chignon, decorated with two long
feathers pointing forwards. This figure was
sometimes doubled, and a particularly fine
one was inside one of the houses (Fig. 5). Odd

FIG. 5. — Female figures cut on the boulders.

corners of the rock were filled up with these designs
(Fig. 6). There was also a block with a rather
deeply carved sort of owl's face inside one house.
Outside one house were the deep marks of tool
grinding.

" Some houses had two entrances on the same
side, and sometimes a middle partition. I found
no implements, but had no means of digging.
I saw a few obsidian chips, and have no doubt
there is much to find here.

" Mr. Cooper gave me a broken stone fish-hook

and an old wooden idol.

p2

200 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

" We rode down to a cave by the sea on the
west side, called in the map c Hangaroa.' There
were many paintings in red and white and black,
principally frigate birds (Fig. 7), and a man-of-war

FIG. 6. — Designs carved in the rock outside the houses at the lip
of the crater.

with white portholes, and another square-sailed
ship. These do not appear to be of great
antiquity.

" In the village I got some rough obsidian spear-
heads and a large stone adze.*

" Mr. Cooper tells me that there are, in other

FIG. 7. — A painting in a cave of a frigate bird.

parts of the island, inscriptions in stone, but we
saw none ; he describes them as like ' Japanese

* An obsidian implement which we brought home, has been sub-
mitted to Mr. J. Edge-Partington, who kindly writes to me concerning
it as follows : — " It is a cutting implement, probably at one time
mounted on a wooden handle. I have figured one from British Museum
Collection in Edge-Partington and Heape « Ethnographical Album of
the Pacific Islands/ 1st S.f PL 3, No. 5."

PAINTINGS AND IDOLS 201

writing.'* The more modern idols are of the type
of the statues, with a broad nose with narrow
bridge. The old wooden idol (mentioned pre-
viously) is quite different, with high cheek bones
and a 'Wellington' nose." The wooden "charm,"
Fig. 8, was purchased by Major Wilbraham from

FIG. 8. — Wooden " charm." Worn, perhaps, on the heart.

a native on the island. It does not appear to be
very old, and is probably a " modern " ornament.
There is evidently much of great interest to
be found on Easter Island, and it would well
repay the trouble and expense of a thorough
investigation ; but, if anything is going to be
done it must be done soon. Every year makes
a great difference to the state of the carvings
and caves, as the latter are now much used as
shelters for sheep, and in a comparatively short
time all traces of any carvings will be worn away

* The Easter Islanders alone of all the inhabitants of Oceanea and
South America possessed a written language. Wooden tablets, on which
the script has survived, are described by Mr. O. M. Dalton, cf. " Man,"
1904—1.

202 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

by the frequent passing to and fro of these
animals.

It would not be so very difficult for an ex-
pedition to visit the island, for at least once every
month a schooner or a small steamer leaves
Valparaiso and calls there, and I have no doubt
that one could easily reach it by these means.

The whole of my time during our short visit
was spent in collecting specimens of natural
history, and I had no opportunity of visiting the
caves and stone houses. Birds and insects were
very scare — in fact, I have never seen an island of
the size of Easter Island inhabited by so few
birds.

There is apparently but one species of indigenous
land-bird. This bird I did not meet with, but it
was described to me by Dr. Macdonald, who saw
a single example near the settlement, as being
somewhat like a reed-bunting but with a red
breast. I believe this to be an undescribed species,
and it is unfortunate that no specimen was
procured.

There is a tinamou, a bird much resembling
a partridge, but this has been introduced from
South America. Two of these birds, which were
shot and skinned, proved to belong to a common
species of tinamou, known as Nothoprocta
perdicaria. Sea-birds were rather more numerous,
but these were mostly seen from the ship before
we landed. On the island itself I saw but two

A POOR FAUNA 203

species, the common noddy tern, the same bird
as that found on Saint Paul's Rocks, and white
terns.* The latter were seen in the crater of
Rano Kao, where they were apparently nesting.
In a marsh at the bottom of the crater were
numbers of small geese, which were seen both by
myself and Major Wilbraham. These geese may
have been introduced, but as none of us had time
to get to the bottom of the crater, no specimens
were procured. In coloration they appeared to
belong to two species ; some being black with a
patch of white on the wing, while others were of
a red colour. These differences may, however,
be due to sex. A golden plover was, we were told,
introduced by Mr. Cooper, who, several years ago,
turned out six of these birds on the island.

There are no indigenous mammals on Easter
Island, the rat which inhabits it having been
imported, and a cat, which is found wild, being
descended from the domestic cat.

On the second day of our visit I landed early
in the morning, and set off in the direction of the
crater. After a long walk I eventually reached
the Up of this volcano, but, owing to lack of time,
I was unable to get to the marsh at the bottom of
it. I scrambled about half-way down to pick
up a tern which I had shot, but at this point it was
extremely difficult to descend, owing to the nature
of the ground, which was covered with loose stones

* Oygia alba.

204 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

and debris. I obtained a glimpse of the geese,
and had a good view of the marsh about 1000 feet
below me.

Easter Island is now almost entirely covered
with grass, and, from the sea, presents an unbroken
view of rolling grass-covered country. A closer
inspection shows that amongst the grass lie in-
numerable rocks of lava of various sizes, and were
it not for the number of sheep tracks in all
directions, it would be a tedious matter to walk
any distance in many parts of the island.

A few low trees have been planted amongst
the houses at the settlement, and at the bottom
of the crater I noticed some small trees and bushes.
In former times there were many trees, but all
appear to have been felled, and the land cleared
to make grazing ground for sheep and cattle.

At the time of our visit there were 40,000 sheep.
They were very small, and their wool was of a
yellowish colour, doubtless discoloured by the
earth. All the wool is shipped to Valparaiso,
whence it goes to Bradford, in Yorkshire.

Two sheep and a bullock were required for the
ship, and we watched the natives catching them.
The sheep were easily ridden down by a couple of
men on horseback, and were at once slaughtered.

A bullock was then singled out and separated
from the herd by the two mounted natives. Each
man was armed with a strong lasso made of raw
hide, the end of which was fastened to the saddle

LASSOING A BULLOCK 205

of his horse. As soon as the bullock was cut off
from its companions it was headed for the shore.
Driven frantic by the cries of its pursuers it
charged straight for us, and we had barely time to
scramble out of the way before it was galloping
over the spot where we had been sitting. Then
brought to a standstill by a low cliff, it was most
skilfully lassoed by one of the horsemen, who,
from a distance of some twenty yards, threw his
thong in such a way that the running noose fell
over the horns of the bullock and at once drew
tight. The second native then cast his lasso
over the beast's hindquarters, the lower end of the
loop lying on the grass just behind its hind feet.
The other native then rode to the front making
the bullock step backwards and thus stand within
the circle of the lasso which was at once pulled
tight, so that the poor beast fell heavily to the
ground. It was then dispatched by a knife thrust
in the throat.

I was indeed sorry when we sailed away from
Easter Island after so short a stay. I had been
able to spend only some six hours on shore, and
the greater part of that time was taken up in
walking from the landing place to the crater, a
distance of something over three miles along an
exceedingly rough track.

In a voyage of this kind, however, it is im-
possible to do so much as was originally intended,
owing to delays which are always experienced in

206 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
ports. For instance, we were delayed for various
reasons at Bahia for two weeks, and the same
length of time at Valparaiso, where the ship was
dry-docked, owing to an injury to the propeller,
sustained while steaming through the ice in
Smythe's Channel.

In such ways as these, days were lost in places
of little interest compared to that of Easter
Island and Pitcairn. The whole of this voyage
occupied nine months only, and so we were forced
to be content with extremely short stays at many
of the islands, while visits to others, such as South
Trinidad and the Marquesas, had to be abandoned
altogether.

CHAPTER XXI.

PITCAIRN ISLAND.

AT six o'clock on the morning of March 22nd,
1903, we sighted Pitcairn. The history of this
island and its people is well-known, but a brief
account here of the origin of the inhabitants
may not be out of place.

At the time of its discovery by Carteret in 1767,
Pitcairn was uninhabited, but afterwards it
became the home of some of the survivors of the
mutineers of H.M.S. " Bounty," who, after cap-
turing the ship, visited Tahiti and, taking native
wives, finally settled on Pitcairn and destroyed
the " Bounty." Here they remained undiscovered
for twenty years, until a passing ship, noticing
signs of inhabitants, lowered a boat and found
them with their descendants. Since that time
Pitcairn has been inhabited almost solely by the
descendants of the mutineers, and at the time of
our visit there were about one hundred and ninety
persons living there.

As we drew close we could see that it was of
small size, and rose precipitously from the sea.

208 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST
Banana trees, coconut palms, and bushes were
growing in great profusion, and gave a green,
fertile appearance. Here and there, where the
land had been tilled, the red-coloured earth made
a vivid contrast with the green foliage, while the
deep blue of the sea and sky put the finishing
touch to a charming picture.

Immediately the anchor was dropped in "Bounty
Bay " two boats came off to the ship, and as they
drew alongside their occupants scrambled on deck.
Nearly all of the men were well-built, several of
them being six feet in height. They were bare-
footed, and clothed in blue cotton coats and
trousers. Their boats were laden with fruit —
bananas, limes, and water melons — which was soon
offered for barter or sale. Their first request was
one for cartridges in order to shoot their fowls,
which ran wild over the island. Later on, while
pushing our way through the thick bushes on
Pitcairn, we frequently disturbed parties of these
fowls, birds of all colours, which took to flight and
sailed away at a great rate. Some were pur-
chased by the steward for our consumption, but,
as might have been expected, they were ex-
ceedingly tough and leathery.

As soon as possible we went ashore in one of
the boats. The surf is always breaking, even on
the best landing place, and these islanders gave us
a fine exhibition of boat management. We rowed
straight at the breaking surf until within a few

A CURIOUS WARBLER 209

feet of it, when suddenly our boatmen swung
the boat sharply and, almost touching a huge
rock, passed in safety into a small sheltered bay,
where we landed on a sloping sandy shore.

High up on the shore, under the shade of banana
trees, was a boathouse containing several large
boats, one of which was pointed out to us as " the
boat Queen Victoria gave us." It was pre-
sented to the Pitcairn Islanders several years
ago by the late Queen, who always took a deep
interest in this little British colony.

We ascended a steep winding pathway to the
settlement, and as we walked numbers of small
blue-tailed lizards* ran across the path in front
of us, while many were seen climbing over the
rocks and tree-trunks. Amongst the tree-tops
small warblers were busily searching for insects,
and uttering a loud " chack-chack." This bird,
a reed-warbler — Tatare vaughani — is the only
land-bird to be found on Pitcairn. It has a rare
peculiarity of plumage. When young the colour
is normally a greenish-brown, but after the first
moult many of the feathers in the wings and tail
become a creamy white. In no case are these
white feathers evenly distributed, but they are
scattered indiscriminately amongst the normally
coloured quills, f The uneven distribution of the

* Lygoeoma cyanurum.

f It is possible that very old birds may have entirely white wings and
tail. Amongst the specimens we obtained some were whiter than
others, though in no case were they evenly marked with white.

210 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

white feathers points to a tendency to albinism
from some cause, and it may be due to excessive
interbreeding. This seems quite likely, as the
island is very small, and this one sedentary species
is particularly abundant from the shore to the
highest peak. For its size it utters an extremely
loud note, and I was frequently surprised by a
harsh screaming, like that of a jay, which I found
to be made by this little reed-warbler.

Flying over the tops of the coconut palms
were numbers of white terns,* while now and
again a red-tailed tropic bird| sailed high
overhead.

A short walk brought us to the settlement,
and there we were met by the women and children.
The arrival of a ship at Pitcairn is a rare event,
and every one seemed very pleased to see us. All
the houses originally built by the mutineers of
the " Bounty " are still standing, and were in-
habited at the time of our visit. They are strongly
made of wood, which was probably taken from
the " Bounty." Each house has two rooms,
both of which are on one floor, raised about 18
inches from the ground by means of stout posts.
The roofs are thatched with palm leaves, and the
windows are unglazed openings cut in the wooden
walls, and fitted with sliding wooden shutters.
The newer houses in the settlement are for the most
part built after the same pattern. In the centre

* Oygia alba. f Phaethon rubricauda.

THE INHABITANTS 211

of the village is a large wooden building, which is
used both as church and school.

The ruler of the people of Pitcairn is a Mr.
McCoy, who is called the chief magistrate. Un-
fortunately he was away on a visit to Tahiti, and
we therefore did not see him. Lord Crawford
paid a visit to the two oldest inhabitants, Mr.
Thursday October Christian, aged 84, and Mrs.
Young, aged 82, both of whom are grandchildren
of original mutineers. Both these old people were
ill in bed, but appeared to be much delighted to
see us. In each home were three pictures, cut out
of an illustrated paper, representing Queen
Victoria and our present King and Queen.

The older people, as well as the young children
of Pitcairn, have fair complexions, but the people
of from 30 to 50 years of age are quite as dark as
the average Polynesian. It appears from this
that the Pitcairners resemble their ancestors,
the " Bounty " mutineers, every alternate
generation.

Having obtained a guide, Dr. Macdonald and I
started on a walk over the island. From the settle-
ment we ascended the highest peak, about 1000 feet
above the level of the sea, the way leading through
a luxuriant grove of bananas, amongst which the
reed-warblers were very abundant. The peak is
composed of a mass of bare rock, and from the
summit we had a fine view of the settlement and
the southern end of the island. Well-made paths

212 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

were numerous, and during the day we walked
over the whole of the island, the greater part of
which is under cultivation. Water-melons,
oranges, and bananas are the principal crops ;
the fruit was ripe and in great abundance. A
continual supply of fresh water trickles from near
the summit of the peak, and this is conducted to
the settlement by means of wooden troughs. The
water is collected in paraffin barrels, and in these
we found the larvce of a mosquito.* Near the
summit we passed through a grove of coconut
palms, in which several pairs of white terns were
nesting, and our guide told me that there are
several places in the island where some sea-bird
nests in holes in the ground, but that it was not
then its breeding season. This bird must be a
petrel, but of what species I do not know.

The windward side of the island is precipitous,
and in the cliff there is a cave which Major Wil-
braham examined. He found little of interest,
however, except a rough carving of the rising sun.
The only records of inhabitants previous to the
mutineers which we could discover were some
stone axe-heads, which we brought away.f There
appear to be no burial-places, such as those found
on Easter Island, nor any images or monuments
of any kind. Possibly, however, Pitcairn was never
previously inhabited, and the axe-heads may have

* Stegomyia fasciata.

f Mr. Edge-Partington kindly informs me that an " axe blade " sub-
mitted to him is Tahitian in type.

ffi ^
fc ^

A MEETING 213

been left by visitors from a neighbouring shore. *
It may be that the Easter Island people paid
periodical visits.

No mammals are indigenous to Pitcairn, but
rats have been imported by ships, and their burrows
were seen in plenty. A number of goats, of which
we saw a large herd, run wild, and provide meat
for the inhabitants. Occasionally they are driven
in a valley to be counted, as only a certain number
may be shot annually.

We saw no butterflies on the island, but there
were many small moths, and one species —
Plutella maculipennis — was most abundant.

At sunset we went on board the yacht, which
was anchored off the settlement, but early next
morning a heavy squall arose and the anchor was
found to be dragging. Fortunately steam was up,
and we got away from the rocky shore, towards
which the wind had been rapidly carrying us,
without mishap. It was found afterwards that
the flukes of the anchor had been broken off,
probably by striking a rock when "let go " on
the previous morning. During the following day,
for as long as we remained at Pitcairn, the yacht
had to be hove to off the island.

During the morning we landed again and
attended in the large building previously mentioned
a meeting of the islanders, at the close of which

* It is possible that these " visitors " were those " vanquished in
war " and cast adrift on a raft from neighbouring islands, as suggested
by Brodie (Pitcairn Island, 1851, p. 48).

Q

214 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

the National Anthem was sung. Each verse,
written on a blackboard, was held up by a stalwart
native for everyone to read. The singing was
excellent, and in part singing I have rarely heard
its equal ; every one of the islanders sang heartily
in perfect tune and time. At the close of this
meeting the Union Jack was hoisted over Mr.
McCoy's house, and a salute of twenty-one guns
was thereupon fired from the " Valhalla." Before
we left all the inhabitants visited the yacht, and
Lord Crawford was presented with a piece of iron
ballast and some copper nails, which had been
saved from the " Bounty."

Soon after mid-day we steamed slowly away,
and four boats laden with men and women singing
a farewell song followed for some distance in our
wake.

All the inhabitants of Pitcairn can speak perfect
English, but when speaking among themselves
they cannot easily be understood by a stranger,
as they then clip their words, sounding only the
first and last letters. Why they do this it is
difficult to say. When questioned, they replied
that they were talking their " own language,"
adding that this language only differed from
English in the above mentioned particular.

CHAPTER XXII.

TAHITI — SOCIETY ISLANDS.

Six DAYS after leaving Pitcairn, Tahiti,* the largest
and most important of the Society Islands, was
sighted, and at 10 o'clock in the morning we
dropped anchor off the town of Papeete. The
barrier-reef protecting the harbour is almost
a-wash at low water, and we had to lie outside
and wait for a pilot.

From this position a splendid view of the island
was obtained. A series of jagged peaks extends
through its whole length — peaks covered from
base to summit with dense forest, and intersected
by narrow gorges filled with rushing torrents of
clear water. The town of Papeete is built in a
clearing in the forest ; between it and the
shore lies a stretch of grass dotted with trees,
many of which grow within a few feet of the sea
and overhang the water. The main street runs
parallel with the harbour, and a short distance

* Tahiti is often referred to as Otaheite. This name, we were
assured by the Tahitians, is incorrect, and originated from a mistake
made by Captain Cook.

Q2

216 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

inland we could see the French flag flying over
Government House.

The pilot, after a little delay, made his appear-
ance, and, taking us safely through the opening in
the reef into the still water beyond, brought us to
an anchorage close up to the town.

It is forbidden to shoot birds both on Tahiti
and on the neighbouring island of Eimeo, nor
were we able to obtain permission from the
Governor to collect for scientific purposes. During
the whole of our stay, which lasted for nearly a
fortnight, we saw very few birds indeed. A swift
of a species of Collocalia was most frequently seen ;
this, with a few small grass-finches and a single
thrush-like bird, completed the list of indigenous
land-birds met with by us. The Indian mynah
was introduced some years ago for the purpose of
destroying a large yellow-bodied wasp which is so
numerous as to be a pest. The mynah increased
enormously, and is now very plentiful, but the
number of wasps remains the same. There can
be little doubt that it is entirely owing to the
presence of this bird that the native species have
become so scarce.

Sea-birds were also scarce, the greater frigate
birds,* tropic birds, and noddies t were occasionally
observed, while white terns J were seen in some
numbers flying round the palm trees, on the leaves
of which they lay their single egg. Both blue

* Fregata aquila. j- Anous stolidua. J Oygia alba.

A REMARKABLE SANDPIPER 217

and white forms of a small heron* were seen to-
gether on a small islet, and lastly, at the mouth
of a river at Tautira, some miles from Papeete,
a single sandpiper! was met with.

Tahiti at one time was the home of a handsome
sandpiper J so aberrant as to be placed in a genus
by itself. The bird was discovered by Captain
Cook, and the only specimen of it now in existence
is in the Leyden Museum. Dr. Bowdler Sharpe
has lately described, from an old coloured figure,
a second species of the genus from the neighbouring
island of Eimeo. There is, of course, a chance
that the Prosobonia may yet be re-discovered on
Tahiti, or on one of the neighbouring islands,
for the group has been by no means thoroughly
explored.

We paid several visits to the barrier-reef, where
the water was so clear that we could see every-
thing as in a glass tank. There were many large
holothurians, one of which on being captured
ejected an example of the long silvery fish which
has been described as living in these "sea-slugs."

The coral was covered in many places with sea-
urchins, which were possessed of spines three or
four inches in length, so that when walking on the
reef great care had to be taken to prevent a nasty
wound.

One evening we watched some natives spearing

* Demiegretta sacra. f Totanus incanus.

J Proaobonia leucoptera.

218 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

fish by torch-light. Two canoes paddled out a
few yards apart until they were exactly over the
reef. A torch, composed of dead leaves of the
coconut palm, was then lighted and waved to
and fro until the fish, attracted by the glare, rose
to the surface of the water and swam near the
boats. Then followed a delightful exhibition of
skill. A native standing up in the bows of his
canoe would hurl his long spear at a fish as it
crossed in front of him, and so deadly was the aim
that even small fish, several yards distant, were
seldom fortunate enough to escape. The spears
were made of light wood, with five straightened
fish-hooks bound in a cluster at the end.

Afterwards we all waded on the reef attempting,
in native fashion, to spear the fish as they darted
about in the masses of coral, but we were not very
successful, and soon were glad to abandon the sport,
since several of us were badly pricked by the
sea-urchins, the spines of which broke off short
after entering the flesh and produced intense pain.

One day our friends on shore arranged a picnic
in our honour at a place called Fautawa, which
was reached by about an hour's drive through
magnificent scenery. The road for a great part of
the way led along the edge of a mountain stream,
winding through a deep valley in which Fautawa
is situated. At the top of the valley there
towered above us a tall peak the summit of which
was composed of a series of jagged points clustered

A PICNIC 219

together in the shape of a crown. Having arrived
at our destination we were in time to see the last
of the festal preparations made by the natives
for our entertainment — the removal of the sucking-
pig from the oven. The oven was a hole dug in
the ground and lined with large stones which had
been previously heated in a fire. Banana leaves
had been placed over the hot stones, then the pig
had been laid in whole and completely buried,
first with the banana leaves, and finally with a
layer of earth. Here it had remained for an hour
or more, and certainly when it was exhumed it
was perfectly cooked, and served up with plantains
it made a most palatable dish. We were given
several other native dishes, of which the most
choice perhaps was the famous " coconut salad."
This salad is made of the heart of the green top of
a coconut tree, and as each salad involves the
destruction of a tree, it is only prepared on a special
occasion.

After a few days' stay at Papeete we were
invited to pay a visit to the village of Tautira,
which is reputed to be the most picturesque spot
in Tahiti. We gladly accepted the invitation,
and got under weigh early one morning. Steam-
ing close to the land we had a fine view of the
wild rugged coast, and of the high jagged peaks
with their cloud-covered summits. Many water-
falls, looking in the distance like threads of silver,
were falling sheer down the precipitous wall of

220 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

rock which forms the coast in this part of Tahiti.
Now and again valleys would open into view,
and down them sparkling rivers rushed into the
sea.

It was late in the afternoon when we reached
Tautira, and a boat at once put off from the
shore. In it came the chief of the village, who
piloted us safely through the passage in the reef.
We anchored off the mouth of the small river,
near the banks of which the village of Tautira is
built.

The barrier-reef in this part of the island is
almost a-wash at high tide ; it is nearly semi-
circular in shape, and so perfectly flat on the top
that, as we entered the passage, we seemed to be
steaming through a gateway in a low wall.

The shore is a strip of red-coloured sand, with
a narrow belt of coconut palms. Behind the
palm trees lies the village, and beyond rises a
magnificent range of hills clothed to the summit
with almost impenetrable forests. The houses
are well built, of native pattern ; the walls are made
of upright bamboos, with a half -inch space between
each to allow a free passage of air into the house.
Rows of mats are so arranged that they can be
let down to cover the walls in case of rain, while
at other times they are rolled up under the eaves.
All the houses are thatched with leaves of either
the coconut palm or pandanus.

The surroundings of Tautira are very beautiful.

CLIMBING FOR COCONUTS 221

The ground is covered with a thick growth^of
green grass, studded with hibiscus and other
flowering plants, while orange trees grow in great
profusion.

In Tahiti, as well as in most of the South Sea
Islands, great numbers of coconuts are grown,
and after being dried for copra are shipped in large
quantities to Europe. We were much interested
in the different methods of gathering the nuts in
various islands. In Tahiti the natives climb the
trees with the help of a strip of green fibrous bark
torn off the stem of a hibiscus tree. After knotting
the two ends together, the climber slips his feet
half through the circle, and, standing with his legs
apart, so as to stretch the thong tight, ascends the
tree in a series of leaps, with a foot on each side of
the trunk. A practised climber will thus mount
trees of a very considerable height with a celerity
and ease which do not suggest the long practice
actually required. On making a trial myself,
I found it difficult to climb even so much as a foot
from the ground.

In its fresh green state the coconut provides
a most refreshing drink, but as it grows older the
" milk " hardens and forms the white kernel with
which we are all familiar. This kernel is the
celebrated copra, and is commercially put to
many different uses. In Tahiti it is used for sauces
and for coconut oil. One sauce, which was served
with fish at the above-mentioned picnic, although

222 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

compounded of scraped nut and sea-water, was
really quite palatable.

At Tautira one of the sailors brought me the
dried shell of a coconut which he told me was full
of lizards. I at once plugged the " eye-holes "
and took the nutshell on board, where a careful
examination showed that it contained 136 lizard
eggs, 294 empty egg-shells, and 13 newly-hatched
lizards. It would seem, therefore, that many
females of this species* repair to the same place
to deposit their eggs. The eggs themselves were
found to be in all stages of incubation, from
" newly-laid " to shells containing perfect lizards.
I afterwards found several hundreds of eggs of
this species in a hole in the ground, close to the
sea, at Papeete. Butterflies were very scarce
on Tahiti ; at Papeete we met with only one
species ;t and on a small coral island some miles
from Tautira, with but one more.J A large
hawk-moth, much resembling the well-known
convolvulus hawk-moth, was caught on board
while we were at anchor. Five species of Micro-
lepidoptera were also caught at the poop light.
These have been determined by Lord Walsingham,
who has described one as a new species under the
name of Pyroderces crawfordi.

Mosquitoes § were extremely troublesome on
shore, but very few appeared on the ship until

* Lygoeoma cyanurum. f Nipara deutha var. walkeri.

, J Hypolimnas bolina var. thomsoni* § Stegomyia fasciata.

HABITS OF LAND-CRABS 223

after we left the island, when we discovered that
they had been breeding freely in a can of water
containing a growing "ti" plant.

Everywhere along the sea-shore and about the
villages the ground was honeycombed with the
burrows of land-crabs, and in some places the
whole surface appeared to be moving with these
creatures. At the least alarm they popped into
their holes, from which they never strayed far
during the day. When chased, a crab would often
hurry into the wrong burrow, and be ejected im-
mediately by the rightful owner, but the inhospi-
tality did not help one to catch them, owing to
the speed with which they vanished ultimately
underground. If one stood quite still they would
reappear at the mouth of the burrow, waving
their stalk-eyes in all directions on the look-out
for danger. I caught one by cutting it off from
its burrow and driving it against a fallen tree,
where it turned at bay, rolling its eyes and waving
its claws in a formidable manner.

Some of the smaller species of land-crabs
on these islands have yellow, others bright blue,
claws, and one gains a striking impression of
colour when some hundreds of these crabs wave
their bright claws as they run over the dried mud
close to the sea.

During our stay at Tautira our friends arranged
a native concert. This consisted of the singing of
" himinees." About one hundred natives sat in

224 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

a semi-circle cross-legged on the grass, facing a
conductor who gave out the words of the song in
a loud voice. The subject of the song, usually
chosen on the spur of the moment, refers to some
topic of local interest ; on this occasion the arrival
of the " Valhalla " was the chosen theme. The
singing was somewhat weird, but by no means
displeasing, and the entertainment would be
varied frequently by the conductor, who would
leave his seat and run a few paces towards us,
shouting and stamping, before he turned again
to the performers to urge them to greater efforts.

The day before we left Tautira the ship was
visited by a continual stream of canoes, which came
from far and near, bringing gifts of fruit, etc., to
Lord Crawford. By nightfall the " Valhalla " had
the appearance of a huge vegetable and fruit
market ; there must have been at least a ton of
bananas, oranges, plantain, coconuts and other
fruit on board, as well as several Muscovy ducks
and a little piebald pig. When all was aboard the
chief of Tautira, one of the finest looking men I
have ever seen, made a speech, and then formally
presented the gifts.

At ten o'clock the next morning we left Tautira
for Papeete again, to complete our coaling, which
took a long time owing to the scarcity of lighters.

During our last day at Tahiti we were confined
to the ship by one of the heaviest storms I have
ever witnessed, the rain falling in such torrents

HOSPITABLE TAHITIANS 225

that in a few minutes the streets were literally
full of water.

Early on the morning of 17th April, 1903, we
left Tahiti, and in a few minutes the island was
completely hidden in rain clouds. During our
visit we were treated with the greatest kindness
by the inhabitants, who, with the characteristic
hospitality of the Tahitian, gave up the whole of
their time in order that we might see the many
beauties of their island home ; and our stay, which
had been all too short, will ever be recollected as
one of the most delightful experiences enjoyed
during the voyages of the "Valhalla."

Shortly after leaving Tahiti on the morning of
17th April we passed close to Eimeo, or Morea, as
it is now called. We had made arrangements to
visit this island, but our plans were upset by
unavoidable circumstances, and only a distant
view of its beauties was obtained. It rises almost
perpendicularly from the sea ; the summit is
composed of a series of peaks so sharp and even
that they somewhat resemble the teeth of a
gigantic comb. Through one of these peaks
there is a large boring known as the Giant's Spear
Hole, which is discernible from Papeete Harbour,
some twenty miles distant.

CHAPTER XXIII.

TUTUILA ISLAND, SAMOA.

AFTER leaving Tahiti our course was laid for
Tutuila Island, one of the Samoan group, and six
days later we arrived off the mouth of the harbour
of Pago-Pago.* After waiting in vain for a pilot
we entered the harbour without one, and steamed
through the narrow intricate passage which ex-
tends for some distance towards the centre of the
island where the town is situated.

Tutuila belongs to the United States of America,
and is used principally as a coaling station for their
ships, and the harbour of Pago-Pago is undoubtedly
one of the best anchorages in the South Pacific
Islands, owing to its sheltered position.

Our visit was made solely for the purpose of
obtaining coal, but, being unable to get a supply
there, we were forced to leave almost immediately
for Apia. Thus only one day was spent ashore,
and it was impossible in the short time to do much
in the way of collecting.

* Pronounced " Pango-Pango."

A WET CLIMATE 227

Tutuila is apparently of volcanic origin, and the
harbour is the centre of an ancient crater. From
information given to us I imagine that the highest
point in the island, the whole of which is covered
with dense forest, is about 2500 feet above
sea-level. The climate is very hot and damp,
and the annual rainfall is considerable. During
our stay rain fell heavily and without intermission,
so that collecting under these conditions was by
no means easy or pleasant. A butterfly net was
soaked through in a very few minutes, and
cartridges swelled to such an extent that shooting
was almost out of the question. I managed to
keep a few dry by carrying them in a sponge-bag
— a most useful plan in a damp climate.

Butterflies and moths were extremely numerous,
and a considerable number was obtained in spite
of the wet weather. A large sphinx moth was
hovering round the flowering bushes, apparently
undisturbed by the rain, and several smaller
kinds of moths were continually beaten out of the
soaking wet grass. Birds were fairly abundant ; the
most numerous being a small greenish-coloured
species, with a moderately long curved bill, the
gape of which was adorned with two orange-
coloured wattles which extended over the cheeks.
This bird — Ptilotis carunculata — is peculiar to
the Samoan Islands, though other species, more or
less closely allied, are found on the Fijis and in
Australia and New Guinea.

228 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

A fine kingfisher,* apparently restricted to the
wooded] hillsides but common there, was feeding
entirely upon insects, especially the larvce of some
species of moth. In the coconut palms a small
paroquet was seen, but not obtained, and a little
sunbird,f of a vivid scarlet and black, was feeding
among the blossoms of the trees.

The most striking mammal was the fruit bat,{
numbers of which were seen flying about over the
trees even in broad daylight, while at dusk so
many of these huge bats came down from the high
forests, that we judged there must be a large
colony of them at no great distance from
Pago-Pago.

Dr. Macdonald and I climbed a pass between
two high peaks. For some distance the path led
through a plantation of coconut trees, where
one of the natives engaged in gathering the fruit
offered to climb a tree and procure nuts for us.
Armed with a huge knife he approached a coco-
nut tree, and with a sudden downward and side-
ward stroke cut a small notch in the bark, into
which he put the toe of one foot while he cut another
notch with great rapidity a little above the first,
then cutting notch after notch with marvellous
rapidity he ascended the tree.

While drinking the juice or " milk " of the
coconuts, we entered into conversation with this

* Halcyon pealii. f Myzomela nigriventris .

J Pteropus ruficollis.

FRUIT BATS 229

man. He was a finely built fellow ; except for a
waist-cloth of tappa* he wore no clothing, but
nearly the whole of his body was covered with
tattooing. On one arm we noticed a number of
tattooed stripes, and on asking the reason for these
bands we were informed that they signified the
number of wives he possessed. He had, as far as
I can remember, seven such stripes.

After leaving the coconut grove we entered the
forest, and a short time afterwards gained the
crest of the island. Here a fine view was obtained.
On one side Pago-Pago harbour, looking like a
small pond below us ; on the other, the far side of
the island sloping gradually downward towards
a large village situated on the sea-shore.

At the top of this pass we saw numbers of noddy
terns, | also a few bosun or tropic birds, but no
specimens were obtained. Fruit bats were very
numerous, and were continually sailing high over
our heads, evidently disturbed by the sounds of
the shots we had fired.

Throughout the day we were unable to get
within shot of the fruit bats, and as I much wished
to obtain a specimen, I landed again late in the
evening, but, although they were then flying lower,
I did not secure one. I afterwards shot one
example on Upolu Island, and have no doubt
that it is the same species as that inhabiting

* A strong, stiff cloth made from the bark of the Paper Mulberry
Tree (Brouaaonetia papyri/era).
f Anous stolidus.

B

230 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Tutuila, as these two islands are in sight of one
another, and fruit bats can fly great distances.
The damage these creatures cause to the coconut
and banana trees must be very great.

A number of natives gathered together on the
shore to watch our departure. The rain was falling
in torrents, and removing their scanty clothing
they carried it under their arms rolled up in banana
leaves. Nevertheless, most of them had umbrellas
to protect their heads from the rain — a ridiculous
sight but a very necessary precaution, for it is
the fashion in the Samoan Islands to dress the hair
with lime, which, when exposed to the rain, runs
down into the eyes and often causes blindness.
Most of the natives are blind in one eye from this
cause, and consequently considerable care has to
be taken to keep the head dry during wet weather.
The men without umbrellas kept their hair tightly
bound up and well covered with banana leaves.

In Tutuila we first saw that dread disease
" Elephantiasis," which is said to arise from the
bites of mosquitoes. In these islands nearly 25
per cent, of the inhabitants were suffering from
this disease, some having enlarged arms, others
legs swollen to the size of a bolster, while others
again were afflicted in various parts of the body.
A man, apparently strong and well, but with one
arm twice the thickness of the other, was no
uncommon sight.

CHAPTER XXIV.

UPOLTJ ISLAND, SAMOA.

ABOUT twelve hours after leaving Tutuila we
entered the harbour of Apia, the capital of Upolu,
and the principal town of the Samoan group.
Rain was falling heavily and the island and harbour
had a dismal appearance. Much wreckage was
lying about on the shore, a forcible reminder of
the fearful hurricane when H.M.S. " Calliope "
was the only vessel to escape out of the many
anchored in the harbour at the time.

The anchorage is by no means good. Reefs
are plentiful, and some of them are just a- wash
at low water, and there are no islets or pro-
montories sufficient to shelter ships at anchor,
should there be an on-shore wind.

On some of the reefs we saw some natives fly-
fishing. Standing up to the waist in water, they
were flogging away with what seemed to be indif-
ferent success. We afterwards had an opportunity
of examining the tackle used by the Samoans.
It proved to consist of a stout bamboo rod, to the
point of which a strong line was attached ; at

R2

232 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

the end of the line a piece of wood about six inches
long was tied crossways ; and to each end of this
a black feather-fly of large proportions was tied.
These two flies, not to mention the piece of wood
to which they were attached, seemed quite enough
to scare away any fish, but for all that we saw many
small fish of about half-a-pound weight taken by
these means.

Wishing to know the regulations with regard to
shooting on the island, Dr. Macdonald and I visited
the vice-consul. During our conversation with
him we learnt that he had been many years in
the Samoan Islands, and as I was most anxious
to see a living example of the tooth-billed pigeon,*
or " manu mea," as it is called by the natives,
I closely questioned the consul about it. He told
us that it was not uncommon in some parts of the
interior of the island, where it appears to live in
colonies. The nearest place where he knew it
could be found was, however, a two days' journey
from Apia, and as we were only to stay at the
island for three days an expedition thither was out
of the question. I asked him if he could at once
send a native to get a living example ; he promised
to do so, but the man did not return before our
departure.

The following morning I went for a long walk
on the sea-shore, returning by a path through
the cultivated land. The sandy beach swarmed

* Didunculus atrigirottris.

THE HOSPITABLE SAMOAN 233

with shore-birds, sandpipers* and a small species
of golden plover")" — the latter to be seen in vast
numbers — were the most conspicuous. At the
mouth of a small river I saw some rails, and
amongst the birds I shot was a brilliant scarlet
and black sunbird.J The small parrot seen on
Tutuila was also observed here in the coconut
trees, but, owing to its extreme shyness, no speci-
mens were obtained.

During this walk, which led me some distance
from the town, I was able to get an idea of the
hospitable nature of the unspoilt Samoan native.
Happening to enter a village on the banks of a
small river, I was at once accosted by the head-
man, who, by signs, invited me into his house
for refreshment. The house, like all those in
Samoa, was little more than a roof supported on
long beams of wood, the walls being merely mats,
which could be let down in bad weather. The
floor was covered with large mats which, like those
of the walls, were made of the leaves of the
pandanus, or screw-pine, most neatly and strongly
woven together. The people sleep on the floor,
their heads, or rather necks, resting on a thick
bamboo pillar, raised about an inch from the floor
by means of long crossed pieces of wood, shaped
like the letter X, and fastened one at each end of
the bamboo.

* Totanu* incanus. f Charadrius fulvus.

J Myzomela nigriventris.

234 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

The kindly chief gave me oranges, bananas,
and coconuts, and after the repast, clapped his
hands for " kava " to be brought in. I was
then enabled to have my first taste of the
national drink of the Samoan and Fiji Islanders,
and as I have never seen a full description of
the manner in which kava is prepared, or the
ceremony of its drinking, I will describe here
what I saw.

A large wooden bowl, its surface highly polished
by constant use, supported on four short wooden
legs, was first placed in position ; then facing it
we all sat cross-legged on the ground in a semi-
circle, and when all were seated the " towpow,"
or chief dancing girl* of the village, to whom only
the preparation of the kava is entrusted, entered,
and took her seat facing us behind the bowl.
A lump of kavaf was next produced and cut up into
pieces of about the size of a walnut ; these were
beaten into shreds between two stones, £ and then,
being placed in the bowl, were covered with water
brought in coconut shells from the nearest
spring. When the bowl was nearly three parts

* In calling the towpow the " chief dancing girl of the village," I
infer that she is the chosen " performer " in the native dance where all
the other " performers " are men. Towpow is Tahitian for virgin.

t The dried root of a pepper tree.

| Formerly the shredding of the kava root was done by the 4i towpows ' '
chewing the root, but this custom is now prohibited by law. In one
village, situated some distance from the capital, I saw kava prepared
in the original way ; but so cleverly and quickly was it done that, had
I not been especially looking out for it, I should not have noticed
anything unusual.

CEREMONY OF KAVA DRINKING 235

full of water, a bunch of fibres, made from the
inner bark of the hibiscus, was handed to the girl,
who, after vigorously stirring the liquid, scooped
out a mass of sodden kava root and handed the
fibres to an attendant, who carried them outside.
This proceeding having been repeated several
times, the kava was declared, amidst a clapping
of hands, to be ready. The towpow thereupon
dipped a large coconut shell, holding about a pint,
into the bowl and carried it first to the most im-
portant guest, and then to all the others in turn.
The cup is delivered with a most graceful down-
ward and then upward swing of the arm, and the
guest, still sitting cross-legged, takes the cup and
calling loudly " Manuia," drains it at a draught.
No sipping is allowed, and to anyone not accustomed
to kava the experience is by no means pleasant.
Kava looks like soapy water, and the taste of it —
well, anyone desirous of ascertaining what it
tastes like can make a very good imitation by
mixing a dessert-spoonful of " Gregory " powder
in a tumbler of water. Having drained the
contents, one passes the coconut shell back to
the donor. This may be done in two ways. An
experienced drinker throws the shell in such a
manner that it spins round in the air and falls
" dead " at the foot of the bowl. A less ex-
peiienced guest had better hand it back with a
bow as the easiest way out of a difficulty, for it
is considered the height of bad manners if the cup

236 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

is thrown so as to roll even a short way past the
kava bowl.

Europeans who have lived for several years in
these islands assured us that they became so
accustomed to drinking kava that they acquired
a taste for it, but we never took it without an
inward shiver.

A too liberal indulgence of this drink causes
temporary paralysis of the legs from the knees
downwards, as well as a numbing sensation of the
tongue, though we were told that even at this stage
the brain remains perfectly clear.

The vice-consul had very kindly invited me to
visit his farm, about three miles from Apia, and
there I spent the second day of our stay. It was
very warm work walking thither, as the whole way
was uphill under a blazing sun. Arriving at the
farm, I struck off into the forest with a guide in
search of birds. The most numerous and probably
the most beautifully coloured of all the birds in
Samoa is a small dove,* of about the size of a
turtle-dove, with an emerald green back, a ruby
red crown, and a brilliantly-coloured breast of
several shades of red and yellow.

We climbed up the hillside for a considerable
distance, and from the highest point we had a
distant view of the grave of Robert Louis
Stevenson, who was buried on the top of the hill
overlooking Apia Harbour. I was most anxious

* Ptilopus fasciatu*.

THE KING OF SAMOA 237

to visit this spot, but we were forced to abandon
the idea as the day was drawing to a close.

The day before our departure from Apia the
King of Samoa, Mataafa, paid a visit to Lord
Crawford on board the yacht. He was quite
unexpected, and at the time we were entertaining
a large party of native chiefs and their families,
about thirty of whom were sitting in the saloon.
Suddenly the king was announced, and we were
somewhat astonished to see all our guests vacate
their chairs and sit on the floor. This, however,
so they told us afterwards, is the correct thing to
do when in the presence of their king. He was
a very striking looking old man, dressed in a
plain white coat and kilt, his only ornament being
a thick gold chain, which he wore round his neck.

The Samoan Islands, with the exception of
Tutuila, belong to Germany, and are ruled by a
Governor. So Mataafa is now a king in name
only. Nevertheless he appears to be an im-
portant personage amongst his subjects, all of
whom treat him with the greatest respect.

Our last evening in Apia was spent at a native
dance, which provided one of the most picturesque
scenes we witnessed during this voyage. We sat
in a semi-circle round a large covered enclosure,
and faced the dancers, of whom there were about
forty, all in native dress.

The Samoan " dance," or " Siva," as it is called,
consists chiefly of a series of arm exercises

ADIEU TO THE SOUTH SEAS 239

accompanied by a weird chanting and clapping
of hands. The proceedings were brought to a
close by a kava drink, for which the most remark-
ably beautiful cups were used. They were made
from shells of coconuts polished and re-polished
to such an extent that they had become scarcely
thicker than eggshells, and had darkened to a
deep black colour. We were informed that these
cups were very valuable owing to the great amount
of labour required for their manufacture ; they
were only used on very special occasions.

On 3rd May, four days after leaving the Samoan
Islands, the " Valhalla " came to anchor off the
town of Suva, the capital of the Fiji Islands. A
very short time was spent here, and we conse-
quently saw very little of interest. The town of
Suva is as unlike a South Sea Island town as can
possibly be imagined. Shops of all kinds are
scattered along the whole length of the sea-front,
and it is almost impossible to realize that
cannibalism was once rampant in this island.

Sailing from Suva on 6th May, 1903, we bade
adieu to the South Sea Islands, amongst which
so many delightful and never-to-be-forgotten days
had been spent. Every year these islands are
more and more visited by ships from all parts of
the world, and each year brings to their inhabit-
ants the very doubtful blessings of civilization.
The people living in the less accessible parts,
although quickly becoming spoiled by European

240 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

influence, are quite superior, not only in appear-
ance, but in manners and physique, to those of
the larger towns.

After passing through the Torres Straits, where
we visited Thursday and Prince of Wales Islands,
we "coaled" at Singapore and Colombo and
thence proceeded via the Suez Canal for home,
and on August 1st, 1903, we dropped anchor at
Cowes.

THE END.

INDEX.

dbbotti, Cinnyris, 111.

Ibis, 119.

Rallus, 108.

acunhae, Nesospiza, 66.
cequinoctialis, Majaqueus, 71.
cethiopica, Ibis, 78.

alba, Oygis, 14, 51, 56, 203, 210,

212, 216.
Albatroses, 158, 187.

(Diomedea chlororhynca), 65,

67, 68, 71.

(D. exulans), 65, 158.

(D. fuliginosa), 65, 68, 72, 158.

(D. melanophrys), 72.

albiceps, Elainea, 166.
Aldabra Island, 114-124.
aldabranus, Dicrurus, 117.

Nesacanthus, 116.

Turtur, 117.

aldabrensis, Caprimulgus, 123.
Ambre, Cape, Camp, Forfit d', 93.
americana, Rhea, 167.
americanus, Podiceps, 185.
amgulifer, Dromicus, 154.

Ani, black, 147.

Anjouan (Comoro Islands), 88.

antarcticus, Fagus, 163.

Ants, 29, 31.

Apia, 231, 236.

aquila, Fregata, 14, 48, 60, 102, 216.

ardeola, Dramas, 85, 118.

ariel, Fregata, 49.

arminjoniana, CEstrelata, 157.

Assumption Island, 107-113.

assumptionis, Centropus, 110.

Turtur, 110.

Astove (coral island), 123.
atratus, Cathartes, 30.
atriceps, Phalacrocorax, 167.
aura, Cathartes, 30.
auricapilla, Dendrceca, 147.
auriculata, Zenaida, 15.

Bahia, 20-36.

barbatus, Chrysomitris, 167.

barkleyi, Coracopsis, 131.

Barracuda (fish), 106.
Beeches : Antarctic (Fagus Ant-
arcticus), 163.

evergreen (F. betuloides), 163.

Bee-eaters, green (Merops super-

ciliosus), 91.
Beri-beri disease, 35.
betuloides, Fagus, 163.
bicolor, Euethia, 141.
Blackbird( Turdus magellanicus ), 1 72.
bolina, Hypolimnas, 222.
Boobies, 3, 4, 10.
brachypterus, 171.
braziliensis, Nettion, 33.

Scops, 30.

Bulbul (Ixocincla crassirostris), 131.
Buntings (Zonotrichia canicapilla),

166.
Butterflies, 16, 21, 27, 213, 227.

(Hypolimnas bolina), 222.

(Nipara eleutha), 222.

" Buzi," (Comoro Islands), 87.

cana, Agapornis, 87, 97.
canescens, Totanus, 85.
canicapilla, Zonotrichia, 166.
" Cape hen " (Majaqueus cequinoc-

tialis), 71.
Cape Town, 71.
capensis, Motacilla, 80.

Phalacrocorax, 77.

Caracara, 20.

carolinensis, Galeoscoptes, 149.
carunculata, Ptilotis, 227.
Casuarina trees, 101, 115.
Catamarans, 19.

Cats, 29, 203.
" Cavalli " (fish), 6.
Cayman Islands, 144-154.
caymanensis, Melanerpes, 149.

Quiscalus, 151.

chilensis, Megalestris, 162, 167.
chlororhyncha, Diomedea, 65, 67,

68, 71.

Churruca Bay, 173.
cinereus, Tachyeres, 163.

242

VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Coconut trees, 18, 219, 228, 233.
" Coco de Her," 132.
Collocalia, 216.
comorensis, Coracopsis, 89.

Pteropus, 87.

Comoro Islands, 82-92.

Condors (Sarcorhamphus gryphus),

163.

coppingeri, Turtur, 102.
Copra, 221.
Cormorants, 71, 173.

(P. capensis), 77.

(Phdlocrocorax atriceps), 167.

(P. neglects), 77.

(P. vigua), 183.

coronata, Dendrceca, 147.
corvina, Terpsiphone, 130.
Cosmoledo (coral island), 123.
Crab-plovers (Dromas ardeola), 85,

118.
Crabs, 3, 181 ; land-crabs, 43, 45,

58, 91, 223 ; robber-crabs (Birgus

latro), 105, 112, 122; spider-crabs,

180.

crassirostris, Ixocincla, 131.
crawfordi, Buteroides, 111.

Corvina, 160.

Dendrwca, 154.

Gygis, 44.

Pyroderces, 222.

creatopus, Puffinus, 189.
cristata, Corythornis, 85.

Crows (Corvus scapulatus), 102, 109.
Cuckoos (Coccyzus maynardi), 148.

lark-heeled, 96, 110.

Curieuse (island), 130.
Curlews, 85.
Curlew-Sandpipers, 83.
cyanurum, Lygosoma, 209, 222.

dacunhae, Pelecanoides, 67.
Dassen Island, 70, 81.
delicata, Gallinago, 33.
demursus, Spheniscus, 161.
depressa, Nertera, 69.
desmursi, Sylviorthorynchus, 186.
Diego Suarez, 92.
discolor, Dendro&ca, 147.
Dolphins, 162.

dominicanus, Larus, 78, 190.
Dotterel (Eudromias modesta), 172.
Doves (Turtur aldabranus), 117, 123.

(T. assumptionis), 109.

(T. coppingeri), 102.

(Ptilopus fasciatus), 236.

(Zenaida auriculata), 15.

Easter Island, 191, 206.
ecaudatus, Gentetes, 90, 98.
Eden Harbour, 182.
Egrets, sacred (Demiegretta sacra),

117, 217.

Eimeo (island), 216, 225.
Elephantiasis, 230.
elephantina, Testudo, 116.
eleutha, Nipara, 222.
eminentissima, Nesocanthis, 86.
eremita, Nesochicla, 65.
Europa Island, 82.
exulans, Diomedea, 65, 158.

fasciata, Stegomyia, 212, 222.
fasciatus, Ptilopus, 236.
Fautawa, 218.
Felicite Island, 129.
Fernando de Noronha, 11, 20.
ferox, Cryptoprocta, 99.

Myiarchus, 32.

Fiji Islands, 239.

Finches (Euethia bicolor), 141, 216.

(Nesospiza acunhae), 66.

Fishing : at St. Paul's Rocks, 6, 10 ;

at Tahiti, 217 ; at Upolu, 231.
ftaviventris, Motacilla, 96.
Flycatchers (Elainea albiceps), 166.

(E. martinica), 141.

(Myiarchus ferox), 32.

(M. pelzelni), 32.

(Pitangus caymanensis), 151.

(Terpsiphone corvina), 130.

(T. lindsayi), 86.

(Tyrannus melancholicus), 32.

Flying fish, 3.

Fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox), 99.
Fowls, domestic, in a wild state,

103.

franciscce, Astur, 95.
franklini, Larus, 188.
Frigate birds, 119, 153.
great (Fregata aquila), 14, 48,

60, 102, 216.

lesser (F. ariel), 49.

Fruit : bananas, 208, 224 ; coco-
nuts, 18, 208, 224; figs, 16;
guavas. 150 ; limes, 208 ; man-
goes, 30 ; oranges, 224 ; plan-
tains, 219, 224 ; sapodillas, 18 ;
water-melons, 208.

Fruit bats (Pteropus comorensis), 87.

(P. rufficollis), 228, 230.

Fuegians, 174, 175, 181, 184.
fuliginosa, Diomedea, 65, 68, 69, 72.

Sterna, 17, 60, 61, 104.

INDEX

243

fulvus, Charadrius, 233.
fumosa, Chcetura, 32.

Gannets, 2, 152, 153.

(Sula leucogaster), 3.

(8. piscator), 47, 61, 102.

garnoti, Pelecanoides, 160.
George Town, 145.

Glorioso Island, 99-106.

Goats, 41, 112, 213.

gobio, Aphrites, 180.

Goby (Periophthalmus koebreuteri),

91.
Goose, 2Q3(Chloephagapoliocephala),

183.

kelp(<7. magellanica), 162, 167,

178.

gracilirostris, Vireo, 16.
gracilis, Tachornis, 91.

Tinnunculus, 128.

grams, Puffinus, 64.
Gray's Harbour, 185, 187.
Grebes (Podiceps americanus), 185.
Greenshanks (Totanus canescens), 85.
griseus, Puffinus, 189.
Ground-sloth (Mylodon), 167.
gryphus, Sarcorhamphus, 163.
guildingi, Chrysotis, 140.
Guinea-fowls (Numida mitrata), 94,

99.

Gulls (Larus dominicanus), 78, 167,
190.

(L. franklini), 188.

Hawks (Astur franciscae), 95.
(Asturina nattereri), 30.

(Milvago chimango), 179.

(Tinnunculus gracilis), 108.

Hawksbill (Chelone imbricate), 103.
Herons (Buteroides crawfordi), 111.

(Demiegretta sacra), 117, 217.

Hibiscus, 107, 110, 221.
hirundinacea, Sterna, 167.
Holothurians, 217.
hova, Mirafra, 94.
Huanacos (Llama huanacos), 163.
" Huemule," 181.
Humming-birds, 27, 177.
hypoleucus, Totanus, 85.

Ibises, Abbott's (76w? abbotti), 119-
121.

sacred (/6t« cethiopica), 78.

Ice in Eyre Sound, 182.
Ice-plants, 72, 74.

He de Lise, 100, 104, 105.

imbricata, Chelone, 103.
Inaccessible Island, 63, 66.
incamis, Totanus, 217, 233.
incerta, (Estrelata, 64.
inftexirostris, Quiscalus, 141.
insularis, Oymnoscops, 128.
interpres, Strepsilas, 4.
Itaparica, 21-36.

jacana, Parra, 28, 33.

" Kava," 234, 235.
Kelp-weed, 66, 180, 184.
Kingfishers (Corythornis cristata), 85.

(Halcyon pealii), 228.

Kites (Milvus migrans), 84, 102.
koebreuteri, Periophthalmus, 91.

Larks (mirafra hova), 94.

latro, Birgus, 105.

Lauristinus, 52.

Lava-images on Easter Island

(illust.), 194.

Lemurs (Lemur mayottensis), 90.
lepturus, Phaethon, 15.
leucocapillus, Micranous, 5.
leucogaster, Sula, 3, 100.
leucoptera, Prosobonia, 217.
lindsayi, Terpsiphone, 86.
Lizards (Mabuia punctata), 20.

(Lygosoma cyanurum), 209,

222.

Love-birds (^Ig'opornis cana), 87, 97.

wocrttra, Eupetomena, 27.
maculipennis, Plutella, 213.
Madagascar, 93.
madagascariensis, Alectrosnas, 97.

Bernieria, 97.

Foudia, 86, 96, 127.

Ixocincla, 89.

Zosterops, 97.

magellanica, Chloephaga, 167, 178.
magellanicus, Mytilis, 172, 174, 180.

Spheniscus, 161.

— Turdus, 172.

Magnolias, 131.

Mahe, 125-127.

Mango trees, 30, 32, 149.

Mangrove swamps, 85, 153.

Marie Louise Bay, 132.

Marmosets, 30.

Martin Vas, 58-62.

Martins (Tachycincta meyeri), 166.

house (Chelidon urbica), 166.

Martinique, 139-143.

244

VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

maynardi, Coccyzus, 148.
Mayotte (Comoro Islands), 84-92.
Mayottensis, cypselus, 87.

Lemur, 90.

Zosterops, 86.

melancholicus, Tyrannus, 32.
meyeri, Tachycincta, 166.
Microlepidoptera, 222.
migrans, Milvus, 84, 102.
minor, Alectroznas, 122.
mitrata, Numida, 94, 99.
Mocking-birds (Mimus orpheus),l4:9.
modesta, Eudromias, 172.

Zosterops, 128.

Molineux Sound, 178-181.
Monte Video, 157-160.
Mont Pelee, 141, 143.

Moorhen, flightless (Porphyriornis

nesiotis), 66.
moquini, Hcematopus, 79.
Mosquitoes : 16, 28, 29, 34 ; (Stego-

myia fasciata), 212, 222.
Moths, 51, 228; (feather-feeding),

6 ; catching, 29.

(Plutella maculipennis), 213.

Sphinx, 103, 227.

Mouse ( Mus musculus), 18, 29, 55.
Mozambique Channel, 82-92.
Mullet, grey, 180.
Muscovy ducks, 224.
musculus, Mus, 18, 29.
Mussels (Mytilus, magellanicus},
172, 174, 180.

(M. patagonicus), 180.

mydas, Chelone, 103.

Mylodon, 167

Mynahs, Indian, 126, 127, 216

"Narrows," 184.
natterri Asturina, 30.
neglectus, Phalacrocorax, 77.
nesiotis, Porphyriornis, 66.
niger, Centrites, 166, 167.
Nightingale Island, 63.
Nightjars, 30.

(Caprimulgus aldabrensis), 123.

((7. unwini), 83.

nigra, Coracopsis, 95.
nigriventris, Myzomela, 228, 233.
North Cousin (islet), 133, 134.

Orchids, 56, 145.

orpheus, Mimus, 148.

Otters (Lutra patachonica), 184.

Owls (Oymnoscops insularis), 128.

(Scops brasiliensis), 30.

Oyster-catchers, black (Hcema-
topus moquini), 79.

Pago-Pago, 226, 228, 229.
Palm trees, 216, 220, 228.
pandanus, 115, 220, 233.
Papeete, 215.
Parroquets, 141, 228.
Parrots, 141, 233.

(Chrysotis caymanensis), 149.

(C. guildingi), 140.

(Coracopsis barkleyi), 128, 131.

(C'. comorensis), 89.

(C. nigra), 95.

(C. sibilans), 89.

(C. vasa), 95.

patachonica, Lutra, 184.
patachonicus, 171.
patagonicus, Cinclodes, 178.

Mytilus, 180.

pealii, Halcyon, 228.
pecuaria, dUgialitis, 79.
Pelicans, 190.

(Pelecanus thagus), 187.

pelzelni, Myiarchus, 32.
Pefias, Gulf of, 187.
Penguins, 72-76.

(Sphenicus demursus), 161.

(S. magellanicus), 161.

perdicaria, Nothoprocta, 203
Petrels, 37, 38, 53, 70.

((Estrelata arminjoniana), 60,

61, 157.

(CE. incerta), 64.

(GE. trinitatis), 42.

(CE. wilsoni), 41, 42, 43, 60,

61.

(Ossifraga gigantea), 80, 158,

189.

(Pelacanoides dacunhae), 67.

(P. garnoti), 160.

(P. urinatrix), 160.

Phalaropes, grey, 188.

Pigeons (Alectrcenas madagascari-
ensis), 97.

(A. minor), 122.

(A. pulcherrima), 129.

(A. sganzini), 86, 89.

(Columba squamosa), 143.

(Didunculus strigirostris), 232.

piscator, Sula, 47, 102.

Pitcairn Island, 207-214.
Plover, golden, 203.

(Charadrius fulvus), 233.

ringed (dSgialitis pecuaria),

79.

INDEX

245

poliocephala, Chloephaga, 183.
Porpoises, 69, 162.
Port de France, 139.
Praslin Island, 130.
Puerto Bueno, 176.
pugnax, Machetes, 80.
punctata, Mabuia, 20.
Punta Arenas, 165-169.

Quail-snipe (Thinocorus rumi-
civorus), 167.

Rafts used in surf, 19.
Rails, 66, 102.

(Rallus abbotti), 108.

(R. vigilantis), 177.

Rano Kao (crater), 198, 203.
" Rat Island," 18.

Rats (Mua rattus), 18, 29, 66, 111,

154, 203, 213.

Rheas (Rhea americana), 167.
Ribbon fish (Regalecus), 80.
ridibundus, Larus, 188.
ridleyana, Elainea, 18.
rubricauda, Phaethon, 210.
rufficollis, Pteropus, 228.
Ruffs (Machetes pugnax), 80.
rumicivorus, Thinocorus, 167.
rustica, Hirundo, 80, 83.

sacra, Demiegretta, 117, 217.
Samoan Islands, 226-239.
Sanderlings, 118.

Sandpipers (Prosobonia leucoptera),
217.

(Totanus hypoleucus), 85.

(T. incanus), 217, 233.

scapulatus, Corvus, 102.
Screw-pines (pandani), 115.
Sea-serpent (illust.), 22-26.
" Sea-slugs," 217.
Sea-urchins, 217.
Seychelle Islands, 125-135.
sganzina, Alectr&nas, 88, 89.
Sharks, 6, 7, 10, 61, 99.
Shearwaters (Puffinus creatopus),

189.

(P. grams], 64.

(P. griseus), 189.

white-breasted, 61.

Shrikes, drongo (Dicrurus aldabra-

nus), 117.

sibilans, Coracopsis, 89.
Siskins (Chrysomitris barbatus), 167.
Skuas (Megalestris chilensis), 162,

167

Skuas antarctic, 69, 70.

Richardson's, 189.

Smythe's Channel, 175-187.
Snipe (Qallinago delicata), 33.

jack, 33.

Society Islands, 215.
Soufriere (volcano), 140.
South Sea Islands, 191.
South Trinidad, 37-58.
spinicaudata, Oxyurus, 169.
St. Paul's Rocks, 1-10.
St. Pierre, 139.

St. Vincent, 139.

Starlings ( Quiscalus caymanensis ) ,
151.

(Q. gundlachi),l51.

(Q. inftexirostris), 141.

Steamer-ducks (Tachyeres cinereus),

163, 164, 170-173, 179.
Stelgidopteryx, 31.
Stints, little, 83.
stolidus, Anous, 4, 9, 40, 50, 60, 80,

100, 104, 111, 203, 216, 229.
Stonechats (Pratincola sybilla), 96.
Straits of Magellan, 162-174.
strigirostris, Didunculus, 232.
strigosus, Grapsus, 3.
Sucking fish, 99.
Sunbirds, 117, 131.

(Cinnyris abbotti), 111, 116.

(G. mahei), 127.

(Myzomela nigriventris), 228,

233.

superciliosus, Merops, 91.
Swallows (Stelgidopteryx), 31, 83.

- (Hirundo rustica), 80, 83.
Swifts (Chaetura fumosa), 32.

(Collocalia), 216.

(Cypselus mayottensis), 87.

(Tachornis gracilis), 91.

sybilla, Pratincola, 96.

Table Bay, 70, 71.
Tahiti, 215-225.
Tanagers, 31.
" Tappa," 229.
Tautira, 217, 222.
Teal (Nettion brasiliensis), 33.
Tenrecs (Oentetes ecaudatus), 90, 98.
Terns (Anous stolidus), 4, 9, 40, 50,
60, 80, 100, 104, 203, 216, 229.

(Oygis alba), 14, 40, 51, 56,

203, 210, 212, 216.

(Q. craw/ordi), 44, 45.

(Micranous leucocapillus), 5,

8, 61,

246 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST

Terns (Sterna fuliginosa), 17, 60, 61,
104.

(S. hirundinacea), 167.

- (S. vittata), 67, 70.

thagus, Pelecanus, 188.
Thrushes (Ixocincla madagascari-
ensis), 89.

(Nesochicla eremita), 65.

Carolina (Galeoscoptes caro-

linensis), 149.

Magellan, 179.

Ticks, 6, 29, 34.

Tierra del Fuego, 176, 182.
Tinamou (Noihoprocta perdicaria),

202.

Toads (Nannophryne variegata), 177.
Tortoise, giant (Testudo elephantina),

115, 118, 123, 129.
toulou, Centropus, 96.
Tree-creepers (Oxyurus spinicau-

data), 169.
Tree-ferns, 39, 55.
Trinidad, South, 37-58.
trinitatis, (Estrelata, 42.
Tristan da Cunha, 63-69.
Tropic (or Bo'sun) bird (Phaethon

lepturus), 15, 17.
red-tailed (P. rubri-

cauda), 210.
Turnstones (Strepsilas interpres), 4,

20.
Turtles, 39, 106, 112.

(Chelone my das, Linn.), 103.

Tutuila Island, 226-230.
Tyrant-bird (Centrites niger), 166.

unwini, Caprimulgus, 83.
Upolu Island, 231-239.

urbica, Chelidon, 166.
urinatrix, Pelecanoides, 160.

Valparaiso, 187-191.
variegata, Nannophryne, 177.
vasa, Coracopsis, 95.
vaughani, Tatare, 209.
vigilantis, Rallus, 177.
vitellina, Dendrceca, 147.
vittata, Sterna, 67, 70.
Vultures (Cathartea aura), 30.

(C. atratus), 30.

Wagtails (Motacilla capensia), 80.

(M. flaviventris), 96.

Warblers (Bernieria madagascar-

iensis), 97.

(DendroBca auricapilla), 147.

(D. coronata), 147.

(D. crawfordi), 154.

(D. discolor), 147^

(D, vitellina), 147.

(Tatare vaughani), 209, 210.

(Vireo gracilirostris), 16.

Wasps at Tahiti, 216.
Weaver bird (Foudia madagascar-
iensis), 86, 89, 96, 127.

(Nesacanthis aldabranus), 116.

(N. eminentissima), 86.

Whimbrels, 83, 85.

White-eyes (Zoster ops madagascar-
iensis), 97, 102.

(Z. mayottensis), 86.

(Z. modesta), 128.

unlsoni, (Estrelata, 41, 42, 43, 60.
Woodpeckers ( Melanerpes caymanen-

sis), 149.

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