8 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST 



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 

 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 



