ANCHOR IN SYDNEY COVE. 49 



are but little understood ; in the course of a long- 

 voyage but few opportunities occur to any per- 

 son acquainted with natural history to examine 

 specimens, and consequently our knowledge re- 

 specting them is limited to a very few facts. It 

 is not in many instances that a new species can 

 be defined ; age and sex often producing differ- 

 ences which are frequently regarded as specific 

 characters. If persons, who may feel an interest, 

 or have studied this interesting science, would 

 note down the differences of plumage, size, and 

 sex, &c. of the birds captured, in course of time 

 a mass of information might be collected, which 

 would serve, in some degree, to determine the 

 different changes of plumage undergone by the 

 various species.* 



On the 21st of August, the south end of King's 

 Island was seen, bearing east-north-east, by 

 compass, at a distance of thirty miles. We en- 

 tered Bass's Straits on the same night, and an- 

 chored in Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, on the 

 morning of the 25th of August. 



* Cuvier enumerates five species ; but at the same time 

 says, " On a observe divers albatrosses plus ou moins bruns 

 ou noiratres, mais on n'a pu encore constater jusqu'a quel 

 point ils forment des varietes ou des especes distinctes." — 

 Hegne Animal, torn. i. p. 535. 



VOL. I. E 



