108 NOTES ON THE OVIPOSITION OF THE FRESHWATER TORTOISE. 



short, which in three itistances I have known to occur, tliey will 

 return to the river and next morning again make their appearance 

 with a fresh supply and complete the unfinished hole. 



I shall be glad to learn if this water-carrying peculiarity of the 

 Chelodina longicollis has been observed by any other naturalist. 



2. Since my previous note on Chelodina longicollis, I found 

 another in the act of using water in burrowing, and had an 

 ■excellent opportunity of watching her. She chose a hard, dry, 

 dusty road for her operations. A surprising quantity of water 

 was used — a continuous stream being kept running into the hole 

 while she dug. In fact the water overflowed the hole and ran 

 from it about two feet. She must have used considerably over 

 a pint of water. The situation chosen was about three chains 

 from the river, on the side of a steep incline, more than thirty 

 feet above the level of the water. It is worthy of notice that 

 the tortoises always choose gi-assless situations for their nests, and 

 such situations are, of course, always the hardest they could choose. 

 This is evidently to avoid the grass. When the hole is scraped 

 out to a depth of seven inches they lay six eggs, over which they 

 throw a covering of fine dust. Next day they return and lay six 

 moi'e which they again cover over with fine dust. They continue 

 laying six per day and covering them over^ until thirty-six are 

 laid. They then cover the nest up level with the surface ; hut 

 never above it. I have found as few as 15 eggs in their nests but 

 never more than 36 ; and strange to say on thiee occasions I have 

 tound exactly that number, viz., thirty-six. The eggs in the 

 bottom of the hole or nest hatch first ; the young scramble out, 

 and Strike a bee-line for the nearest point of the river. Farmers 

 in this district frequently plough up the nests and find therein a 

 number of young, and unhatched eggs. 



