326 ARU. 



Others. It is a pity that it is impossible, on humanitarian 

 grounds, to repeat now the experiment of King Psammetichus. 

 It would be interesting to watch the result. 



In the case of the King-bird {Cicinmirus regius), the other 

 smaller species of Paradise Bird found in the Aru Islands, the 

 males in full plumage seemed as common as the simple brown 

 young males and females. The natives knew these latter well, 

 as forms of the brilliant red bird, though so vastly different, 

 and several times pointed them out to me, as " Gobi, gobi," 

 their name for the " King-bird." 



The King-birds were even more abundant at Wanumbai 

 than the larger species. The males, when settled in the trees, 

 constantly uttered a cry which is very like that of the Wryneck 

 or Cuckoo's Mate. I saw most of them in the lower trees of 

 the forest, at about 30 feet from the ground. One which was 

 shot by Mr. Abbott, engineer of the " Challenger," when we 

 were together in Wokan, hovered and hopped for some time 

 about a mass of creepers hanging from a large tree, apparently 

 searching for insects. As it hovered, it showed its bright 

 scarlet back like a flash of fire. 



Usually, the bird sitting on the twigs and seen from below 

 shows none of its beauty. 



The birds seem very tame, but like the Rifle-bird, and the 

 Great Bird of Paradise, are usually in constant motion. One 

 full-plumage bird sat on a twig, about four feet from the 

 ground, and looked at me for a while at not more than three 

 yards' distance, and then darted away, more out of natural 

 impulse, I imagine, than fear. 



I shot five of the birds in one day. One of them had the 

 wonderful spiral green tail feathers, only just growing out. 

 The bright lapis-lazuli blue colour of the bird's legs and feet 

 when fresh, greatly enhances its beauty. Luckily the skin of 

 the Paradise Birds is tough, and I found the King-bird easy to 

 skin. The short red feathers encroach on the base of the bill, 

 on its upper surface, in an unusual manner, the tip of the bill 

 only being free, and this gives the head a curious appearance. 



The coral rock of Wokan Island is exposed in section on 

 the shore not far from Dobbo, in a cliff about 1 1 feet in height. 

 The strata are inclined towards the sea at an angle of about 

 20°. Inland, the surface is marked by a series of ridges of 

 small elevation, and from the presence of numerous bivalve 

 shells, seems to have been raised above sea level. 



There is a fresh-water stream not far from W^anumbai, which 

 flows over the coral rock, overhung by dense vegetation. In 

 the bed of the stream, a constant deposit of carbonate of lime 

 is taking place, and the bed is partitioned into a series of pools, 



