and its Bird-Islands. 81 



Saldanka Bay, where a small village is situated, about 6 p.m. 

 Very few Duikers (Cormorants) were seen in the Cape Town 

 Harbour, where they are usually numerous, but plenty 

 of Gulls of both our common species (Lai'us dominicanus 

 and L. hartlaubi) were circling and wheeling about among 

 the ships in the docks, and occasionally settling down on the 

 water to pick up the garbage floating there. As soon as 

 we were well away from the harbour several Cape Hens 

 (Majaqneus csquinoctialis) began to follow in our wake. 

 These birds are very easily recognised by the little white 

 patch under the chin, all the rest of the plumage being 

 smoky black ; their wings are long and narrow, and their 

 flight is very Albatross-like. Although I watched them 

 for a long time I never could see them flap their wings ; 

 they appeared to float in the air, depending entirely on the 

 aeroplane system to keep them up, while ranging to and fro 

 across the wake of the ship, and wheeling round with the 

 points of the wing turned respectively down to the water 

 and up to the sky. Only once did they settle on the water ; 

 this was when some scraps were thrown out from the galley, 

 on seeing which they immediately sank down to the water 

 and commenced to feed. 



Off Robben Island we began to see a few Duikers. Their 

 flight is a great contrast to that of the Cape Hens ; they are 

 generally found in small parties of three or four, and follow 

 one another in a long line with a straight flight, not very 

 high above the surface of the water, flapping their wings 

 the whole time. Hereabouts, too, the Penguins began to be 

 fairly numerous, swimming and diving in parties of ten or 

 twelve. Some distance away a few Terns were observed 

 fishing, plunging down into the water like falling stones and 

 recovering themselves very rapidly. They were too far off 

 to identify, but were probably the Common Tern (Sterna 

 fiuviatilis). As we neared Saldanha Bay the Malagas (Sida 

 capensis) began to appear in large numbers, flying back 

 towards Malagas Isle from the fishing-grounds around. 

 During the voyage I was rather surprised not to see any 

 Cape Pigeons (Daption capensis), Molly mawks {Diomedea 



SER. VIII. VOL. IV. G 



