129 



exulans, Linn., the large tvandering Albatross, attended the ship, but 

 they rarely remained beyond the day. Diom. exulans varies very 

 much in plumage ; generally, however, the head, neck, back, and 

 ■wings are more or less mottled grey, and the breast, abdomen, vent, 

 and uropygium snowy white ; the bill is horn-coloured and the feet 

 yellow. — We saw a bird that might be referred to M. Lesson's Diom. 

 epomophora, if that is really a distinct species. — Another of very large 

 size •vvas near us for two days, which, with the exception of the back 

 of the wings and tips of the under side of the pen feathers and ex- 

 tremity of the tail being black, was of a snowy white colour." 



Capt. P. P. King transmitted with his Letter characters and de- 

 scriptions of three of the species of Albatross observed by him, in- 

 cluding those which he regarded as the Diomm. spadicea and chlo- 

 rorhynchos ; together with drawings of these two species. The de- 

 scriptions were read, and the drawings exhibited. The former agree 

 essentially with the descriptions from the šame specimens, recently 

 published in his ' Wanderings in New South ^Vales,' &c., by Mr. 

 George Bennett, who vvas a fellow voyager with Capt. King. The 

 reference of these to the species quoted is, however, provisional only, 

 as they difFer in some important particulars from the original descrip- 

 tions of those species : it is therefore probable that they are rather 

 to be viewed as indicating races hitherto unnoticed by zoologists. 



Mr. George Daniell stated some facts that had fallen under his 

 observation with reference to the habits and economy of two British 

 species of Bats, the Pipistrelle, Vespertilio Pipistrellus, Geoffr.,and the 

 Noctule, Vespertilio Noctula, Schreb., dweUing more particularly on 

 those connected with the feeding of the former, and with the period 

 of gestation and mode of parturition of the latter. 



With regard to the former species, he stated that in July 1833 he 

 received five specimens, all of pregnant feraales, from Elvetham, in 

 Hampshire. Many more were congregated together with them in 

 the ruins of the barn in vi^hich they vs^ere taken, but all the ręst 

 escaped. They had been kept in a tin powder canister for several 

 days, and on being tumed loose into a common packing-case, M^ith 

 a few strips of deal nailed over it to form a cage, they exhibited 

 much activity, progressing rapidly along the bottom of the box, as- 

 cending by the bars to the top, and then throwing themselves ofF as 

 if endeavouring to fly. They ate flies when oiFered to them, seizing 

 them \vith the greatest eagemess, and devouring them greedily, cdi 

 of them congregating together at the end of the box at which they 

 ■were fed, and crawling over, snapping at, and biting each other, 

 at the sarae time uttering a grating kind of sąueak. Cooked meat 

 was next presented to them, and rejected ; but rau* beef was eaten 

 by them with avidity, and with an evident preference for such pieces 

 as had been moistened with ■vvater. This answered a double pur- 

 pose : the weather being warm, numbers of blue-bottle Flies, Musca 

 votnitoria, Linn., were attracted by the meat ; and on approaching 

 within range of the bat's vdngs were struck down by their action, 



