108 THE VICTOKIAN NATURALIST. 



They probably feel their powers going, so if in the proximity of 

 of land make their way to it and end their days in peace on the 

 shore. Mr. T. Fowler picked up a dead Penguin on the Ocean 

 Beach that had tried to swallow a Mullet which was too large for 

 it and was consequently choked. The fish was half-way down the 

 bird's gullet head first, but a fin had caught in the throat, which 

 prevented it from being ejected. 



On the piles of the pier and baths at Sorrento, and also on 

 similar structures round Port Phillip Bay, Mussels, Mytilus latus, 

 are very plentiful, but are apparently kept down to a great extent 

 by a shellfish, Ptirpura succincta, which seems to feed on them. 

 Nearer Melbourne, where children and others paddle about the 

 piers at low water, these shells are collected, consequently there 

 the mussels are much more plentiful, not being preyed on, and it 

 is astonishing how quickly they will cover the piles in dense 

 bunches between high and lower water mark. The Purpura 

 shells grow to a fairly large size, and though plentiful on the piles 

 cannot be easily detected, on account of the seaweed and other 

 marine vegetation growing on them. The largest Mussels seem 

 the first to be attacked, and after the shellfish has killed its prey — 

 although exactly how it does it I am not yet in a position to state 

 -^it remains there until it has completely devoured the occupant, 

 leaving the empty shell hanging loosely by the byssus to the pile, 

 but the waves soon wash it off, and thus many of the piles have 

 been nearly denuded of Mussels by these shellfish. 



One is often struck how frequently in summer Swallows, 

 Hirundo neoxena, may be seen flying about over the bay near the 

 shore after their insect prey, presumably because the insect prey 

 is there in the first instance. On one cold, windy day I 

 counted one hundred and seventy of these dear little birds 

 sunning themselves on the side of the baths which was sheltered 

 from the wind ; they were sitting in long rows, closely packed 

 together, resting, and only a little way above the water. 



[The paper was well illustrated by a series of sixteen lantern 

 slides. — Ed. Vict. Nat.~\ 



THE EFFECT OF SNOW ON EUCALYPTUS TREES. 



By D. Le Souef, C.M.Z.S. 

 {Read before the Field Naturalists'' Club of Victoria, dth Sept., 1901.) 



This winter there have been heavy falls of snow in many of the 

 higher parts of Victoria. I purpose showing by illustrations the 

 effect snow has on eucalyptus trees growing on the lower ranges, 

 which only have snow on them in an exceptionally cold winter. 

 Of course, in the higher mountains of Victoria, the upper parts 

 are deeply covered with snow every winter, but there the trees are 

 small, with their branches short and generally very twisted, which 



