^"'in^s'^'] Hull, The Montague Island Gullevy. 83 



side of the island, or on the top of the cliffs and in the dee]:) ravines 

 on the seaward side ; but there is one group towards the top and 

 middle of the island. Judging from my five days' observations, I 

 should think that Mr. Bailey's estimate of the numbers breeding 

 there is a conservative one. 



After spending a few hours with the Gulls on the first day, we 

 paid a visit to the Penguins on the south island. The numbers 

 breeding there could not be even roughly estimated, as at no time 

 were there any large groups in sight, but their runs and burrows 

 are found all over the south island. During the day the birds are 

 either out fishing, or, if on the land, they are under the thick 

 vegetation, and only discoverable after a long search. In the 

 evening the fishers return about dusk, landing near the jetty or on 

 the extreme southern point of the island, which is quite low. They 

 come ashore in twos, and leisurely waddle up the path, crooning 

 their tremulous little song, and, forming into straggling groups like 

 tired soldiers, proceed on their way home, breaking off from time to 

 time as they reach the turn-off to their own particular " run." I 

 think that this island is the most northerly breeding -place of this 

 species.* All the nests containing eggs that I examined had two eggs, 

 some fresh, others well advanced and nest-stained, but I found no 

 young birds. 



On the second day, i8th September, we visited the GuUery again, 

 taking the seaward side of the island. The cliffs above and to the 

 right of the "gut" descend in a series of shelves, thickly covered 

 with tussocks of grass and rushes, and both on and under the 

 tussocks the nests were in such numbers that we had to walk warily 

 to avoid crushing the eggs. Many of the nests were placed in the 

 centre of the grass tussocks, and the birds had made a deep 

 depression, weaving the long stalks into a high breastwork, which 

 kept the eggs secure from rolling. Under the tussocks the eggs 

 were placed on a few loose straws in a depression scratched in the 

 sandy soil. 



It was indeed an interesting collection that we saw that day. 

 Thousands of those handsome eggs, showing every recorded type, 

 from the pale olive-green ground sparsely to thickly covered with 

 sepia and black markings, blotches, spots, or hair-lines, to the deep 

 rich brown ground bearing similar markings. Two noticeable 

 variations were seen — one with very deep green ground, having a 

 broad ring of black round the thick end ; and another with umber 

 ground capped with black, gradually merging into the brown, but 

 without other markings. The latter was unusually large, measuring 

 2.43 X 1. 51 inches. 



The eggs in the Gullery varied very considerably in size and 

 shape, some being long and tapering, while others were short and 

 swollen. One remarkable clutch of three were similar in size and 

 appearance to the eggs of the White-headed Stilt {Himaniopus 



* Since this was written Mr. Bailey informed me that the Penguin also breeds on 

 the Tollgates, a group of islets off Bateman's Bay, about 40 miles north of Montague 

 Island. 



