234 Zoological Society. 



he would instantly rejoin her : his return to the female was always 

 accompanied by great hurry and clamour, and much gesticulation up 

 and down of his head, but not of the wings. Three other eggs followed 

 on the 7th, 9th, and 1 1 th of March. The eggs were white, and very 

 large in proportion to the size of the bird, being, I should imagine, 

 (for, having no proper scales at hand, I did not weigh or subtract any 

 of them, hoping that more might be laid,) fully equal to those of the 

 Swan Goose or Anas cygnoides. The goose also surprised us by the 

 rapidity of her operations, for we were hardly aware of the fourth egg 

 having been laid that morning, when it was evident that she had be- 

 gun to sit. During the whole period of incubation there could not 

 be a more attentive nurse, and indeed she could not well help it, for 

 the male, if she seemed inclined to stay out longer than he thought 

 right, appeared, by his motions, to be bent on driving her back, nor 

 was he satisfied till he had accomplished his object, when he again 

 resumed his usual position, with his body half in half out of the 

 hutch and his head towards the female ; but if any person crossed the 

 yard of the division, he would immediately hurry after the intruder, 

 though, if he found there was no intention of molesting the nursery, 

 he seemed generally satisfied, and did not like to quit the sheltered 

 part ot the division. At nighi he constantly made room for himself 

 by the female, the result of which was unfortunate towards the pro- 

 geny. 



" On the 12th of April the eggs began to chip, and on the 13th 

 two goslings were excluded ; but it was found that the mother had 

 pushed from under her the other two eggs, which were consequently 

 taken away and put under a hen, though, as one was very nearly 

 cold, little hopes of any success with that were entertained, and it was 

 in fact never hatched, but probably died in consequence of the re- 

 moval by the goose at an important moment. On the morning of the 

 14th it was ascertained that she or the male, who always now sat 

 close beside her in the box, had killed one of the two she had at first 

 hatched, for it was found dead and perfectly flat. The fourth egg f 

 which was put under the hen, was assisted out of the shell, and ap- 

 peared weakly from the first, and as its mother had lost one, we put 

 it to her, in hopes it would do better than with its nurse. She took 

 to it at first very well ; but subsequently, both the parents beating it, 

 it was returned to, and well cared for, apparently, by its nurse, but 

 died on the 20th, having received some injury in one eye, either from 

 the old ones, or perhaps from the hen scratching, and thereby hitting 

 it. The remaining gosling is doing very well, and appears strong 

 and lively, and the parents are extremely attentive to it j and I have 

 little doubt but these birds may easily be established, (with a little 

 care and attention,) and form an interesting addition to the stock of 

 British domesticated fowls. 



" In its general appearance, and its Quaker -like simplicity of plum- 

 age, it seems to approximate most to the family of the Bernacles -, but 

 it appears to have almost as little (if as much) partiality for the water 

 as the Cereopsis." 



The bird in question was named by Mr. Vigors at the Meeting of 



