NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 845 



their nests upon the saltbushcs, while the Sooty Terns were nesting 

 on tlie bare ground beneath. 



On the afternoon of the 9th December we strolled over Rat Island. 

 What a woiiderfvil revelation ! Wliy, the whole place is actually alive 

 with birds, some breeding on every bush, some breeding vmder the 

 bushes, and some breeding beneath the bushes undergi-ouud. Words 

 fail, utterly fail, to convey even au idea of the marvellous scene. The 

 birds ai'e perfectly fearless of our presence. We make our way between 

 the dark-coated Noddy Terns, which cover the saltbushes as well as 

 the groimd in all directions, uttering defiant, bark-like notes. Others 

 just move out of the way with croaking sounds, exposing their single 

 egg on a seciu-e platform nest of seaweeds. Prolonged guttural screams 

 issue from underneath the bushes from Sooty Terns, likewise sitting 

 upon a single egg, but on the bare gi'ound, their enraged mates flying 

 about our heads, filling the air with squeaking notes of anger, and some 

 being iiide enough to strike oiu- hats, while higher still overhead is a 

 cloud of Sooties — bachelors probably — calling " wide-awake" everywhere. 

 Tlie term wide-awake, as applied to these birds, is a sailor's name. In 

 conducting practical investigations in such a fascinating field of natui'al 

 liistory there is just one drawback to contend with, namely, the showers 

 of live guano that fall from the clouds of birds above. Locomotion 

 over the gi-ound is rendered extremely insecure, owing to its lioney- 

 combed nature, caused by countless bui'rows of Petrels, or so-called 

 Mutton Birds. Frequently, placing your feet upon apparently solid 

 gromid, down you sink to the knees in the dry, loose earth, which mns 

 into your boots like water, so when you return to the station you are 

 a pretty sight, head covered with new guano, boots filled with ancient 

 guano. 



From Mr. Beddoes I learn that on the AbroLhos, Sooty Terns first 

 appear in tlie beginning of September, shortly after the Noddy Terns, 

 when they come in vast numbers for about a fortnight. After the 

 young are reared all depart about April. 



In addition to the bird's usual call-note, " wide-awake," a long 

 guttural scream appears to be the alarm note, while " squeak " notes 

 are uttered in anger. The young in down have the underneath parts 

 (except throat) whitish, all the rest of the surface being mottled with 

 black, brown and wliite. Feet and bill are dark-coloured. At the time 

 of my visit (December) the breeding season for the Sooties appeared at 

 its height on the Abrolhos. But it is somewhat remarkable that on the 

 northern coast the laying season is six months later. It is just possible 

 that the birds wliich lay on Abrolhos and other southern localities, such 

 as Norfolk Island, when they depart in April nest again in the Tropics 

 during May and June. This would be an exceedingly interesting point 

 to determine. 



On Raine's Islet and Bramble Key or Quay, Macgillivray found pro- 

 digious numbers of breeding Sooty Terns associated with Noddies. He 

 wrote : " The Sooty Tern deposits its soUtary egg in a slight excavation 

 in the sand, without fining of any kind. The egg varies considerably in 

 its markings. After the party employed in building the beacon on 

 Raine's Islet had been on shore about ten days, and the Terns had 



