12 White, An Ornithological Cruise. [^ 



July 



blue ; lower eyelid metallic green ; gular pouch flesh colour ; bill 

 black, with horn-coloured tip ; legs, feet, and nails black ; iris sea- 

 green. A young bird (No. 4") had the skin in front of the eye orange, 

 bare skin round the eye light yellow ; bill grey, culmen brown ; 

 legs, feet, and nails black. • Stomach contents consisted mostly of 

 weed-fish, and no marketable fish was found in this or the preceding 

 species. Stomach contents were as follow- — No. i, two weed-fish; 

 No. 2, not examined ; No, 3, one leather] acket, 8 rounded stones 

 (7 granite and one sandstone), weighing 2 J ozs. ; one was as round 

 as and the si/e of a large marble. There is no doubt the stones are 

 swallowed to help the digestion, and not picked up accidentally. 

 We know it is a common practice ^vith seals to swallow large granite 

 stones for the same purpose. 



Dr. Morgan registered some of the temperatures as follows : — 

 No. I (seven minutes dead), 101.2° F. ; No. 2 (ten minutes dead), 

 101° F. 



The contents of these birds' stomachs show that they confine them- 

 selves almost entirely to fish living amongst weed, and it is my firm 

 opinion that they do not fish over sandy bottoms, simply because 

 the fish can see them, and so escape. 



Morus serrator dyotti (Sula anstralis). Australian Gannet. — A good 

 many of these birds were seen, mostly being immature, showing their 

 first year's mottled plumage. 



Catoptropelicanus c. conspicillatus (Pelecanus conspicillatus). Eastern 

 Pelican. — Five birds were seen in the water near the Spit. They 

 would have numbered as manv hundreds many years ago. 



Circus approximans gouldi (Circus gouldi). AUied Harrier or Swamp- 

 Hawk. — Several were seen sweeping over the long dry grass on Wedge 

 Island. 



Uroaetus a. audax (U. audax). Wedge-tailed Eagle. — Only one 

 bird was seen, and that was on Wedge Island. 



Cuncuma leucogaster {Haliaehis leucogaster\ White-bellied Sea- 

 Eagle. — Nearly every island seems to have a pair of these birds. 

 Upon Goat Island, in Pondalowie Bay, a pair of these birds was 

 nesting upon a ledge of rock facing the north-east, just under the 

 overhanging top of the island. A large, fully-fledged young one, in 

 its first year's dark brown phimage, was sitting on the edge of the 

 nest. When walking round the top of the island, Dr Morgan and 

 myself found the remains of Penguins, Mutton-Birds, and crayfish — 

 evidentlv the food of these birds. 



leracidea berigora occldentalis (Hieracidea occidenlalis). Western 

 Brown Hawk. — Several birds seen on Wedge Island, and one secured 

 had the stomach much distended with great numbers of lizards. 

 Soft parts in the living bird were : — Iris brown ; bill slaty-blue ; legs 

 and feet grey-blue ; nails dark brown. In my opinion this is strictly 

 a coastal form, and leracidea b. berigora takes its place inland. 



Cerchnels c. cenchroides (Cerchneis cenchroides). Nankeen Kestrel. 

 — Strange to say, a bird flew from the Althorpe light-tower and one 

 from the unattended light on Wedge Island. 



Pandlon hallae'tus cristatus (P. leucocephalus). White-headed 

 Osprey. — First saw this bird at Gambler Island, then at Wedge 

 Island. These islands being within a mile of one another, it is quite 



