44 Mr. M. J. Nieoll — Ornithological Journal 



After leaving Punta Arenas, we had to anchor every night 

 in the Straits, where there are numerous natural harbours. 



\\ hen we had passed the Straits we proceeded up Smythe's 

 Channel, eventually coining out into the Gulf of Peiias. I 

 saw numbers of birds in the Straits of Magellan, but in 

 Smythe's Channel there were very few except Cormorants. 

 Land-birds were very scarce, although the country is per- 

 fectly suitable for them. 



Going through Smythe's Channel we had several good 

 views of glaciers, and one day we were steaming through 

 broken ice for several hours. The different anchorages 

 were very much alike as regards scenery. The shore rose 

 almost straight out of the water, forming very high hills 

 of several thousands of feet, behind which in many places 

 were higher snow-capped mountains. All these hills are 

 densely covered with beech trees (Fagus antarctica). There 

 are two species of beech in the west of Magellan Straits 

 and Smythe's Channel — the one just mentioned, which is 

 deciduous, and the "evergreen beech" (Fagus betuloides), 

 which never loses its leaves. The forests on the hills arc 

 practically untrodden, and it is impossible to get through 

 them in most places without cutting a path. The ground 

 amongst the trees is strewed with hundreds of years' accumu- 

 lation of rotting timber, which makes climbing the hills very 

 difficult, as the explorer often slips into decayed w r ood above 

 his waist. The water in these anchorages looks very black, 

 and is studded in many places with small rocky islands, 

 covered with shrubs and flowers. Almost the only bird-life 

 to be seen consists of flocks of Cormorants with a few Gulls 

 and Steamer-Ducks. We anchored every evening about 

 4 o'clock and had boats down at once. We used to row 

 round the harbours and land on some of the islets in order 

 to get what specimens Ave could. 



The following is a list of birds obtained on the Patagoniau 

 coast between Punta Arenas and the Gulf of Pehas : — 



1. Irycteii chimango (Vieill.). 

 Ibycter chimango Sharpe, Cat. B. i. p. 41. 

 ? . Molineux Sound, Smythe's Channel. Iris black ; 

 bill, tarsi, and toes greenish yellow. 



