84 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST 



the Mozambique coast the night before. Their 

 sail was torn to pieces, and they had no food or 

 water. Our lifeboat was lowered at once in 

 charge of the second mate, and we provided the 

 natives with biscuits, water, a sail, and some 

 rope. 



I believe that boats often get blown away from 

 the coast in the Mozambique Channel in this way. 

 Later on, when we were in the Seychelle Islands, 

 we heard several extraordinary tales of boats being 

 blown away during a hurricane, and being carried 

 for great distances. 



At daybreak on February 23rd, Mayotte, one 

 of the Comoro Islands, was sighted, and a short 

 time afterwards we entered the harbour, which is 

 studded with little islands thickly covered with 

 vegetation. 



As soon as we anchored off the town black kites* 

 appeared. These birds seem to be very common 

 winter visitors to the Comoro Islands, as well as 

 to Madagascar and many islands to the west of 

 it. Round about the ship, during the whole 

 of the time we spent at Mayotte, were many sharks, 

 though most of them were small ones. Several 

 of these sharks were caught with a tarpon rod and 

 line, and gave excellent sport. 



Nearly the whole of the original vegetation has 

 been cleared on Mayotte, and on one peak only 

 is it now possible to see the virgin forests with 



* Milvus migrans. 



