36 BULLETIN 15 5, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



reptiles in areas not previously visited, the work being financed in 

 part by Dr. W. L. Abbott and in part by the Smithsonian Institution. 

 The following account is taken principally from the manuscript 

 notes of Mr. Poole. The collectors reached Port-au-Prince Decem- 

 ber 16, and on December 20 proceeded by way of Ennery to St. 

 Michel, where they established headquarters for work in that vicinity 

 and at L'Atalaye. January 10 they removed to St. Raphael, and 

 January 14 and 15 worked again at St. Michel. January 17 they 

 moved to Dondon, and on January 20 proceeded by way of Grand 

 Riviere to Cap-Haitien, and from there to Fort Liberte, where they 

 arrived January 26. Here they outfitted for work in the small 

 islands known as Les Sept Freres, or the Seven Brothers, off the 

 coast. They reached the islands in a twenty foot Haitian sail boat 

 on January 28, on this day visiting Toruru, Monte Chico, and Muer- 

 tos Islands. All of these islands are small, 8 Toruru being approx- 

 imately 150 meters long by 100 meters wide, flat and only slightly 

 elevated, with two or three small trees, a few bushes, small cacti, and 

 a rather heavy growth of coarse grass. The western side of the 

 island was rough with reefs projecting above the water and large 

 pieces of coral strewn over the narrow beach. Small lizards were 

 abundant. Monte Chico is almost a duplicate of Toruru both in 

 size, appearance and vegetation. 



Camp was established on Muertos Island the afternoon of January 

 28, and this was used as a base during subsequent work on the islands. 

 This island, the smallest of the seven, is only 120 by 90 meters, very 

 low with sandy shores, and is surrounded on three sides by reefs. In 

 the center were three or four trees of good size and a small but heavy 

 growth of bushes. Small lizards were common, and there was a 

 colony of roof rats here. 



Tercero Island, visited on January 30, is about 800 meters long 

 by 400 meters wide, surrounded by a wide, sandy beach. The island 

 was covered with thorny bushes and small trees, interspersed with 

 patches of cacti. At the northeast is a depression that apparently 

 marks the site of an old lagoon. The oystercatcher was obtained 

 here. The following day the boat was despatched for supplies but 

 was prevented from returning until February 3 during which period 

 the collectors were marooned on Muertos Island dependent on rains 

 for drinking water. On February 4 attempt was made to land on 

 Monte Grande, the largest in the group with rather heavy forest, 

 but weather conditions were not right to permit entry through the 

 reefs to the rocky shore so that they continued to Ratas Island. In 



8 For an account of the plant-life of these islands see Ekman, Excursion Botanica al 

 Nord Oeste de la Repuhlica Dominicana, published in Est. Agr. Moca, Ser. B, Bot., No. 17, 

 January, 1930, pp. 11-16. 



