116 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST 



rainfall. All the water holes near the settlement 

 were carefully covered over with branches, to 

 prevent fouling by herons and other wading birds, 

 which are to be found in great numbers. 



Owing to the very shallow water between our 

 anchorage and the land we were only able to 

 go ashore at high tide, and we were thus somewhat 

 handicapped during our short stay, since our time 

 for collecting was necessarily curtailed. 



Early in the afternoon of our first day we 

 landed on the sandy beach, where we were met 

 by the overseer, who conducted us to the settle- 

 ment, about half a mile distant. But our arrival 

 was followed by a heavy rain, which continued 

 for the rest of the day, and obliged us to seek 

 shelter in a house. I was, on that account, unable 

 to do more than watch several species of birds. 

 The commonest, and at the same time the most 

 brilliant, was a weaver-bird,* a tame and familiar 

 bird which fed in large flocks close to the houses. 

 It has a brilliant coloration, the whole of the 

 breast is of a rich scarlet, the abdomen is yellow, 

 the back greenish with black streaks, and the rump 

 is again scarlet. A flock of males presented a 

 striking sight as they roamed the village in search 

 of food ; all were in full breeding plumage, and 

 several pairs were nesting in the casuarina trees 

 which surround the settlement. 



Another familiar bird in Aldabra is the sacred 



* Nesacanthis aldabranua. 



