Mr. J. C. Melliss on the Birds of St. Helena. 99 



generally one at a time ; last year only, a small black Swallow 

 hovered about the rocky cliffs at Ladder Hill for several days, 

 and a solitary Rail, not unlike the Gallinula cristata of Java, was 

 caught at Lemon Valley. There are other instances as well 

 of new species appearing for a short time. The opinion that 

 such birds naturally and unaided migrate from other land should 

 be received with much caution — the nearest mainland being 

 1200 miles distant, and, situated right in the heart of the South- 

 east trade-winds, is nearly always to leeward of St. Helena; the 

 Cape of Good Hope is nearly 2000 miles, and the South- 

 American Continent just as far away; and the Island being 

 situated directly in the track of homeward-bound, and not very 

 far from that of outward-bound ships, birds may escape from 

 either and find a resting-place here. The following extract from 

 the local records of a period when there was much less traffic 

 by sea would, however, tend to show that, notwithstanding its 

 isolation, birds have migrated to the Island: — 



"17th Oct. 1727. There being several birds of a different 

 species from those that frequent the Island lately come hither, 

 the bodies of which are as large as a Pheasant, their leggs long 

 and black, but their claws opened and not webed like sea-fowle, 

 with long bills, resembling those of a Snipe, but thicker and 

 longer in proportion to the bulk of their bodies, which probably 

 may breed here if not destroyed or disturbed — 



" Ordered, that all persons be publickly forbid by advertize- 

 ment either to kill or disturb any of the said birds or destroy 

 any of their eggs." 



There being no bird answering to this description now in the 

 island, it may be presumed that in spite of the precaution these 

 visitors did not remain at St. Helena. It is difficult also to 

 account fully for the almost total disappearance of some species, 

 such as the Frigate-bird, and possibly the entire disappearance 

 of the Albatros, which latter does not now come so far north as St. 

 Helena ; but in Scale's 'Geognosy of the Island of St. Helena' it 

 is stated that innumerable skeletons of it, associated with those 

 of the Tropic-bird, lie buried from ten to ninety feet deep in 

 earthy beds, near Hold-fast Tom and Sugar Loaf. I have not 

 found any of these remains, though, in justice to Mr. Seale, I 



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