118 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST 



where they remained until the tide began to ebb. 

 The commonest and most striking of these was 

 the crab-plover,* which appeared in enormous 

 numbers. A few sanderlings were running about 

 on the water's edge, and so many other birds that 

 to mention them all would be tedious. The 

 richness of Aldabra in peculiar forms will be 

 realised by the fact that out of eighteen species 

 obtained by us during our visit ten are restricted 

 to this island, and one other is found elsewhere 

 only in Madagascar. 



We had been looking forward to seeing giant 

 tortoises in a wild state during our stay, but in 

 this we were doomed to disappointment. We 

 found that it would take at least two days to visit 

 the locality where they are now only to be found, 

 and as we had not the necessary time at our 

 disposal, we were reluctantly compelled to abandon 

 our hopes. I 



Aldabra is also famous for its turtles ; large 

 numbers are caught annually, their flesh being- 

 dried for export. Trays, shaped like huge sieves, 

 were arranged in front of the settlement, and in 

 these a great quantity of turtle-flesh lay exposed 

 to the sun. The neighbourhood of the curing place 

 was not at aU pleasant, for although the drying 

 flesh did not smell objectionably, the same could 



* Dromas ardeola. 



f This tortoise has been introduced into the Seychelles, where it is 

 kept in a semi-domestic state, and later on we savr many of them in the 

 tortoise "farms" in that group of islands. 



