TAMENESS OF THE BIRDS 47 

 covered with a grey down at first, but older birds 

 have their white feathers suffused with a dirty 

 yellow colour. On leaving the nest they have 

 black quills to the wings and tail-feathers, but the 

 plumage of the adult is entirely white, with the 

 exception of a narrow ring of black feathers en- 

 circling the eye. The bill, as I have already noted, 

 is jet black, while the feet are pale sea-blue, the 

 webs joining the toes being milky white. Both 

 old and young have the middle toe furnished 

 with a strong and sharp claw, which is specially 

 useful to the young bird when it is in danger of 

 falling from the nesting-place. 



Several pairs of gannets,* a smaller bird than 

 our well-known solan goose, but somewhat simi- 

 larly coloured when adult, were found sitting 

 on their nests or tending their young. The nests 

 were in every case a collection of sticks placed 

 in a suitable position on the fallen trees. We found 

 no eggs, but the young were in all stages of growth. 

 The newly-hatched bird is covered with pure 

 white down, but it has a black bill, and a patch of 

 bare black skin surrounding the eyes and extend- 

 ing down the neck under the chin. The down 

 on the forehead stands erect, and gives the bird 

 a most comical appearance. 



Photographs were obtained of these birds 

 without any difficulty, and most of the old gannets 

 took no notice at all of our presence. In fact, 



* Sula piscator. 



