NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 883 



Antarctic night of winter. It would also be contrary to tlie general rule 

 tliat migi-atory bii-ds breeding in Australia usually do so at the southern 

 limit of tlieir habitat. 



The prodigious numbers of Mutton Birds that arrived or gathered 

 in Bass Strait in the early days of oui- colonial histoiy are almost 

 incredible. Many readei-s are familiar with the extraordinary flight 

 mentioned by tlie illustrious navigator, Matthew Fliudei-s, in his work 

 on the exploration of Bass Strait. He was in company with Bass at 

 the time (9th December, 1798), and in the neighboiu-hood of Tkree 

 Hummock Island. Flinders wiote : " A laxge flock of Gannets was 

 observed at daylight, and they were followed by such a number of Sooty 

 Petrels as we had never seen equalled. There was a stream of from 

 50 to 80 yards in depth and 300 yards or more in breadth. The birds 

 were not scattered, but were flying as compactly as a free movement 

 of their wings seemed to allow, and dui'iiig a full hoiu- and a half this 

 stream of Petrels continued to pass without interruption, at a rate little 

 inferior to the swiftness of the pigeon. On the lowest computation 

 I think the number could not have been less than a himdred millions. 

 Taking the stream to have been fifty yards deep by three hundred 

 in width, and that it moved at the rate of thirty miles an hour, and 

 allowing nine cubic yards of sp.ace to each bird, the numbers would 

 amount to 151,500,000.* the buixows required to lodge this quantity 

 would be 75,750,000 ; and allowing a square yard to each burrow, they 

 would cover something more than 18| geogi-aphical square miles of 

 ground." 



Mr. R. H. Davies, an early writer about Mutton Birds, who had 

 visited the place for five seasons, found the birds so densely congi-egated 

 in a cloud over Green Island one evening during the breeding season, that 

 he believed darkness was ushered in full}' ten minutes before the usual 

 time. Again, Mr. Davies actually sailed through flocks of these birds 

 all the way from Flinders Island to the Tamar Heads — a distance of 

 eighty miles. 



Gould himself visited Green Island, January, 1839, when he found 

 eggs and young so numerous as to excite his astonishment. 



In more recent years the Rev. Dr. Montgomeiy, diuing one of his 

 trips to the Fumeaux Mission, by an ingenious computation reckoned 

 that upon four small islands alone there could not have been less than 

 2,600,000 birds, old and young. 



When I visited Green Island, November, 1893, the place was a sheep 

 fann, and real mutton was growing where thousands of Mutton Bu-ds 

 used annuall)- to flourish. However, I observed there were still a few 

 bunows occupied by these birds. 



It is somewhat remarkable that only the smaller islands are sought 

 by the Mutton Birds for their nurseries. There is not a burrow on 

 King Island^ the larger islands of Kent Group, or Flinders Island, 

 or Cape Ban-en Lsland of the Fiu-neaux Group. But gi-eat nui-series 

 are on islets lying adjacent to these places. These islets as a nde are 

 flat, clothed with salt^bush and other shrubs, rank tussock grass, pig-face 

 werd ( Mesfmhriaiithemum ), &c. I had the opportimity of visiting. 



* Correct computation, 132,000,000. — A. J. C, 



