82 Transactions. — Zoology. 



away from this one, if any division is attempted. Bonaparte 

 has the thing hind part before in his ' Conspectus.' ' Of the 

 habits of this species on shore the following interesting par- 

 ticulars are given: "These birds are crepuscular near the 

 shore, like Garrodia nereis, and much more common near our 

 station after their first appearance on the 8th December. I 

 had previously seen them at sea east of the Cape of Good Hope ; 

 and on the 14th December I saw them clearly out by day, feed- 

 ing on the oily matters floating away from the carcase of a 

 sea-elephant. They frequent rocky parts of the hillsides, and 

 flit about very like swallows in pursuit of insects. There 

 seemed to be no flying insects on the island, however, other 

 than very minute gnats. The two specimens preserved were 

 shot on the evening of the 29th December, among the rocks 

 near the top of the hill on which we were encamped. I never 

 succeeded in finding the eggs, but learn from the Eev. Mr. 

 Eaton, who found one on Thumb Mountain, some fifteen miles 

 from our station, that it is single, white, and that the nest was 

 made under a large rock not far from the beach. He found 

 the egg on the 8th December. I have no doubt from what I 

 have observed of its habits that it nests among and under rocks 

 habitually, and usually at a considerable elevation above the 

 sea." 



Hymenolsemus malacorhynchus, Gmelin. (The Blue Duck.) 



The male bird has a fine metallic-green gloss on the head, 

 neck, and upper surface generally, being brightest on the crown 

 and on the mantle. The female has less gloss, having a wash of 

 bronzy-brown on these parts, this colour being most pronounced 

 on the crown of the head and mantle. A young male (of the 

 first year) has the same brown tinge on the upper surface, but 

 less than in the adult female. In the mature bird the bill, 

 with the exception of the dark terminal membrane, is in life 

 of a beautiful pinky-white colour ; in the young bird it is of a 

 bluish-white, with a narrow streak of brown down the centre. 

 Both sexes have the soft feathers which compose the inner 

 lining of the wings more or less tipped with rufous ; the male 

 has the under tail-coverts broadly tipped with rufous-red, 

 whilst in the female bird these markings are absent ; in the 

 young of both sexes the under tail-coverts are entirely of that 

 colour. The male has the chestnut-red pectoral markings 

 more distinct than in the female. In the young bird they are 

 considerably diminished, each feather having only a minute 

 touch of rufous, with a spot of black beyond, imparting to the 

 breast a speckled effect. The hides of the young bird, which 

 are originally dark, change rapidly to a dull olivaceous-yellow, 

 which becomes golden at maturity. The old birds on being- 

 caught utter a peculiar rasping cry ; the young has a similar 



