200 Transactions. — Zoology. 



webbed feet and press it down into the nest as if determined 

 to stamp its young life out, but without any apparent injury 

 to the chick, which was quite active and perky immediately on 

 being released from this parental pressure. I did not come for 

 specimens, but to inspect the breeding-place ; however, before 

 leaving I annexed a fine woolly nestling which was strutting 

 about with the air of a lord chancellor, and this specimen I 

 have much pleasure in exhibiting to you this evening. The 

 rest of the birds, old and young, we left unmolested, and 

 came away from Cape Kidnappers much pleased with the 

 result of our visit, and, after a delightful drive in the cool 

 evening air, arrived at Napier at 10 p.m. On our way along 

 the beach we found a fledgling which had evidently fallen 

 from the "rookery" and had floated a couple of miles down 

 the coast, but was apparently still attended by the parents, 

 for it was in excellent condition. From this bird I took the 

 following notes : — 



Fledgling. — Feathers appearing on the head, shoulders, 

 and upper-surface of wings, lower part of back, breast, and 

 sides of body of a slaty-black colour, each feather with a large 

 triangular apical spot of white, even the secondaries and 

 primary coverts being thus marked ; bill and naked face 

 brownish-black ; legs blackish-grey with broad whitish lines 

 down the tarsus and along the toes. 



(Estrelata neglecta, Schl. (Schlegel's Petrel.) 



I have in my collection a series of four (from Sunday 

 Island, one of the Kermadec Group) which appear to bear 

 out completely Mr. Salvin's view as to (Estrelata leiicophrys 

 (of Hutton) being only a condition of that species. They are 

 all of pretty nearly the same size. No. 1 is in the ordinary 

 uniform dark plumage of CE. neglecta. No. 2 has whitish 

 throat; breast, sides of the body, and abdomen white. No. 3 

 has the forehead and lores whitish ; throat, sides of the head, 

 and the wdiole of the fore-neck pale-grey and white intermixed, 

 the former colour assuming the shape of small crescents on 

 the cheeks and lower part of throat ; feathers on vertex and 

 crown with obscure, narrow margins of greyish-white ; nape 

 and hind-neck inclining to greyish-white, being paler than 

 the rest of the upper-surface, but without any markings. 

 No. 4 is in the perfect plumage of the so-called CE. leuco- 

 jplirys. No one examining this series critically could come 

 to any other conclusion than that they all represent one 

 and the same species in various states of plumage. 



Anas chlorotis, Gray. (Brown Duck.) 



Hearing from Mr. Brough, of Nelson, of the capture of a 

 " Crested Teal," I was naturally anxious to see it, and, 



