May, 1907 



THE BIRD ISLANDS OF SOUTH AFRICA 



73 



with Mr. Meade-Waldo and Mr. M. J. Nicoll, two ornithologists who were at the 

 time making- a cruise with the Earl of Crawford in his steam _vacht Valhalla round 

 Africa. We reached Dassen Island late in the afternoon. We stayed the night at 

 the lighthouse keeper's cottage and spent the next day watching the birds. The 

 Penguins covered the whole island and although it was ver}^ late in the season a 

 great many were still breeding. As a rule shallow short burrows are dug out in 

 the sand and the feet are used to throw out the debris. It was a curious sight to 

 see a regular fountain of sand flying up in the air when this operation was pro- 

 ceeding. Where the ground is rocky a crevice or a sheltered spot under a rock is 

 used for nesting purposes, but so numerous are the birds on Dassen Island that the 

 whole ground is riddled with nesting holes and it is difficult to avoid falling into 

 them when walking about. A few small pieces of rag or seaweed or other rubbish 

 are sometimes made use of in the construction of the nest itself l)Ut it is never a 

 ver}^ elaborate structure. 



The eggs are usualh' two in number, though sometimes one, sometimes even three 



BI.ACK-I'OOTED PENOrHXS OX THE SHORES OF DASSEN ISLAND, SOUTH AFRICA 



are to be found; they are chalky in texture and in colour plain white with a faint 

 tinge of bluish; but before being hatched are a good deal .stained and soiled with 

 dirt. The nestlings are comical looking youngsters covered with a uniform coat of 

 brown down; this gradually peels off in shreds and the plumage of the young bird 

 appears beneath. At this stage there is no trace of the white bands at the sides of 

 the head or of the black horseshoe-shaped band across the chest; these are probably 

 not acquired until after the first moult a year later. We observed a great number 

 of 3^oung birds lying dead about the island; this is probably due to some accident 

 having happened to the parents while away on a fishing excursion, as the young- 

 birds are entirely dependent on their parents for their food. 



In the early morning numbers of birds were seen marching solemnly in long- 

 processions down towards the shore to take their morning bath and to go fishing; 

 when hustled at all they fall flat on their bellies, wriggle along at a somewhat faster 

 pace with the help of their flippers, till at last reaching the rocks along the shore 

 they plunge into the sea with obvious satisfaction. As can be seen in the photo- 



