124 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



been driven over by a strong N.W. wind from our Victorian 

 coasts. As the evening closed in we could hear the penguins 

 uttering their curious cry from a rookery situated on one side of 

 Garden Cove, and they were noisy through the best part of the 

 night. Early on Tuesday morning a visit was paid to the rookery, 

 and we found the birds to be the Little Penguin. It was surprising 

 to see how high up the steep cliffs many of the birds had their 

 nests — in some cases fully 450 feet above the sea level. Many 

 of the birds were sitting on their two white eggs, while others again 

 had downy young ones in different stages of growth. The parent 

 birds fought hard when interfered with, and could use their sharp 

 beak and claws with effect, as those members who incautiously 

 put their hands into their burrows can testify. The birds for the 

 most part made their nests, which consisted of dry grass and weeds, 

 in the cavities under or between the rocks. They breed all round 

 the coasts of these islands, wherever they can secure a sufficient 

 foothold to clamber up. In a few instances we found four eggs in 

 one nest — two good and two addled ones — probably laid by 

 different pairs of birds. At 8 o'clock we all started to visit Erith 

 and Dover Islands, Mr. Brown having kindly promised to row us 

 over. We arrived at East Cove, and found the whaleboat ready, 

 and soon rowed across Murray Pass, landing on a sheltered sandy 

 beach on Erith Island, close to where the wreck of the s.s. Bulli 

 lies, with her two masts appearing above water, about 200 yards 

 from the shore. Attempts had been made to raise her, large pon- 

 toons having been built for that purpose ; but all efforts were 

 apparently unavailing. One of the pontoons is still on the beach, 

 but the other four that were made have been broken up and 

 washed out to sea. The steamer had a cargo of 400 tons of coal, 

 and was entering Murray Pass, when she struck a rock and sprung 

 a leak. She was then brought in here to be beached, but sank 

 before that could be accomplished. 

 Erith Two of our members elected to remain in the boat for the pur- 

 Island, pose of dredging, and were successful in obtaining some specimens 

 of Polyzoa. The rest of us ascended the sandy hillocks to explore 

 the island. There were large numbers of penguins breeding here. 

 The runs they had made on the beach to the places that were most 

 easily ascended over the sand hillocks, to get inland, showed how 

 numerous the birds must be. It looked as if a small flock of 

 sheep had been driven up. There being no stones here under 

 which to make their nests, they burrowed fairly deep holes instead, 

 or laid under the thick tussocks of grass and pig-face, which latter 

 plant was very abundant, and the masses of pink flower looked very 

 beautiful in the bright sun. The first animal caught was a rabbit, 

 which the dog got in a shallow hole. They appear very numerous on 

 this island, where there are no half wild domestic cats to destroy 

 them like there are on Deal Island. Shortly after the dog turned 



