Page:The Zoologist, 1st series, vol 4 (1846).djvu/312

1478 dozen of this, the most beautiful of sea-birds, were caught with the hand in holes under the cliffy margin of the island : in two instances they were employed in incubation. There is no nest, and the solitary egg, large in proportion to the bird, is blotched and speckled with brownish red, on a pale reddish gray ground. Nearly every day, two or more tropic-birds might have been observed hovering about, taking long sweeping flights and finally pitching at the entrance of some fa- vourite hole.

Atagen Ariel. This frigate-bird was found breeding in small colonies of about a dozen individuals. Its nest is formed of small dry twigs, raised about a foot from the ground, or sometimes placed upon a tuft of herbage, a foot in diameter, shallow, without any lin- ing. There is but a single egg, white, smooth, and measuring 2·6 by 1·7 inches. The unfledged young is covered with white down, with black feathers on the back between the wings. On one occasion I met with two young in one nest, which unusual cir- cumstance I have good reason to believe originated from the adop- tion of an orphan by a female, with nest and young one close by.

Sula personata. After we had been for a few days upon the island, the gannets, which were never very numerous, had almost en- tirely left during the day, returning at night to roost.

Sula ? This is a small species of gannet, which we named provisionally the "white booby." Its changes of plumage are re- markable and puzzling. Early in June, this species, the young hav- ing been for some time able to fly, forsook the island during the day, returning at night to roost in a large body of several hundreds.

Sula Fiber. The well-known brown booby breeds upon Raine's Islet, but in small numbers, as I found its nest there only once.

Puffinus ? The name of mutton-bird has been applied in Australia to the different species of this genus ; — why, I do not know. On Raine's Islet we found a small colony of these birds among some rank herbage which concealed the entrances to their burrows, in which they were easily caught. Never having seen one on wing during the day-time, and having taken both males and females from their holes, it is probable that they are, in a great measure, nocturnal. I ob- served the same circumstance at Heron Island, where all night long numbers of this, or a nearly allied species, continued flying about our fire, while at daybreak, not one was to be seen.

A visitor to Raine's Islet, is apt to be surprised at the number of dead turtle scattered about the margin of the island, the remains pro- bably of such as have fallen on their backs while endeavouring to