With Flashlight and Rifle -* 



of the European floating plant Potamoyeton, first dis- 

 covered by myself in German East Africa ; but only the 

 seed-pods are to be seen, barely perceptible above the 

 surface. Often I and my men wandered for miles over 

 this world of water, seeing wherever we looked the 

 beautiful preat white eoret, the black-and-white sacred 



o O 



ibises, black-headed weaver-birds, the small white mire- 

 drums, and hundreds and thousands of Egyptian geese 

 and great black-and-white spurred-geese ; while in the 

 far distance flocks of beautiful flamingoes flashed about 

 on the banks 



The duck known as Nyroca capeusis, many other kinds 

 of ducks, beautiful whydah-birds, waterhens, grebes, long- 

 legged plovers (Himantopus nimantopur) and countless 

 other kinds of birds moved about before our eyes, 

 while every now and again some splendid vociferous 

 sea-eagle would swing past above us, emitting its shrill 

 whistle. On the banks plovers flew hither and thither 

 stragglers perhaps from flocks of these winter guests 

 from the far North ; while the white-winged black 

 tern (Hydrochelidon Icncoptcra] swooped down upon the 

 water. 



Now, however, our gaze is arrested by the sight of a 

 bird which is not often seen, and to which our presence 

 is a matter of very keen anxiety. This is the beautiful 

 avocet, black and white (Recurvirostra avocetta), a bird 

 which used once to nest on the German sea-coast, but 

 is now to be seen there no more. This is the first 

 time I have found it breeding in German East Africa. 

 It has brought up its young upon these salt and alkaline 



98 



