22 



BERMUDA. 



Some of the most conspicuous of the present land-birds of 

 Bermuda, such as the " Red bird," or Cardinal, have been 

 introduced for ornamental effect. The birds most interesting 

 to us were the " Boatswain birds" {Phaethoii fiavh-ostris), since 

 we now met them in numbers for the first time, though we 

 afterwards became so familiar with them amongst the Pacific 

 Islands and elsewhere. The birds are white, a little smaller 

 than our commonest English gull, and shaped more like a sea 

 swallow or tern, though allied to the gannets and cormorants ; 

 in their tails are two long narrow feathers of a reddish tint, 

 which, as the bird flies, are kept extended behind, and give it 

 a curious appearance. 



The birds breed, more or less gregariously, in holes in the 

 rock formed by the weathering out of softer layers. It is easy 

 to secure them in the hole by clapping a cap over its mouth, 

 and often both male and female can be caught together. It 

 is however quite a different matter to get hold of them for 

 stuffing : their bills are very sharp and strong, and they fight 

 furiously, screaming all the while. Only one egg is laid, and it 

 is of a dark red colour, like that of the Kestrel. Rats abound 

 in the islands, and I saw one hunting about the holes evidendy 

 on the look-out for eggs or young. These must be the only 

 enemies the birds have except man, and they would find no 

 difficulty in driving the rats off, but I saw several eggs broken 

 and sucked, no doubt in their absence. 



On one of the islands I saw a pair of crows, but they were 

 very scarce, since blood-money to the extent of two shillings 

 a head had been put upon their heads by the Government. 



Crabs abound at Bermuda : a species of Grapsus, a crab 

 which will be frequently referred to by me, climbs the mangrove 



