384 zoology. [1840. 



deck the Hawaiian valleys with mantles of the most gor- 

 geous embroidery. 



(6.) Singing birds, and others whose tones are not melo- 

 dious, but displaying the most beautiful plumage, abound in 

 the groves and forests. Of aquatic fowl there is also an 

 abundance. Tropic birds, whose brilliant-colored tail feathers 

 adorn the robes of royalty, are very common ; and every- 

 where along the coral reefs, and upon the rocky islets, 



" Up and down ! up and down ! 

 From the base of the wave to the billow's crown, 

 And amidst the flashing and feathery foam, 

 The Stormy Petrel finds a home." 



Among the fish are whales and sharks, which frequent the 

 coasts at certain seasons, and the black-fish, bonito, ray, rock- 

 fish and albicore. Black-fish, and others of the smaller kinds, 

 are taken in great quantities by driving them into pens made 

 of stones in the shoal-water. They are also caught with 

 nets and hooks, or with poisonous herbs. Shrimps are ob- 

 tained in plenty, and the pearl oyster is quite abundant in 

 Pearl river and its inlet, on the southern coast of Oahu. 

 After the taro has been gathered, the patches are converted 

 into fish-ponds, in which large supplies of fish are kept till 

 they are required in the markets of the seaport towns. 



Of wild animals there are none but rats and mice, except 

 a few dogs who inhabit the caves in the mountains.* There 

 are small herds of cattle, too, who are partially wild, in the 

 mountainous regions of Hawaii, though they are said to be 

 fast disappearing. Spaniards from California used frequently 

 to come hither for the purpose of capturing them, after their 

 own fashion, with the lasso. They are likewise often caught 

 in deep pits, covered over lightly with brush and dirt, upon 

 which the hoof-prints of a bullock are impressed. After they 

 are taken, the cattle are marked by branding, and kept in 



* Baked dog was once a favorite dish with the Hawaiian chief, and rats and 

 mice were not unacceptable ; but of late years, these dishes are no longer re- 

 garded as luxuries. 



