FLORIDA CORMORANT. 389 



to confirm the species, or restore to it its previous appellation, should it 

 have received one. 



On the 56th of April 1832, 1 and my party visited several small 

 Keys, not many miles distant from the harbour in which our vessel lay. 

 Mr Thrdston had given us his beavitiful barge, and accompanied us 

 with his famous pilot, fisherman and hunter, Mr Egax. The Keys were 

 separated by narrow and tortuous channels, from the svirface of the clear 

 waters of which were reflected the dark mangroves, on the branches of 

 which large colonies of Cormorants had already built their nests, and 

 were sitting on their eggs. There were many thousands of these birds, 

 and each tree bore a greater or less number of their nests, some five or 

 six, others perhaps as many as ten. The leaves, branches, and stems of 

 the trees, were in a manner white-washed with their dung. The tempe- 

 rature in the shade was about 90° Fahr., and the effluvia which im- 

 pregnated the air of the channels were extremely disagreeable. Still the 

 mangroves were in full bloom, and the Cormorants in perfect vigour. 

 Our boat being secured, the people scrambled through the bushes, in 

 search of the eggs. Many of the birds dropped into the water, dived, 

 and came up at a safe distance ; others in large groups flew away af- 

 frighted ; while a great number stood on their nests and the branches, as 

 if gazing upon beings strange to them. But alas ! they soon became too 

 well acquainted with us, for the discharges from our guns committed 

 frightful havock among them. The dead were seen floating on the water, 

 the crippled making towards the open sea, which here extended to the 

 very Keys on which we were, while groups of a hundred or more swam 

 about a little beyond reach of our shot, awaiting the event, and the air 

 was filled with those whose anxiety to return to their eggs kept them 

 hovering over us in silence. In a short time the bottom of our boat was 

 covered with the slain, several hats and caps were filled with eggs; and 

 we may now intermit the work of destruction. You must try to excuse 

 these murders, which in truth might not have been nearly so numerous, 

 had I not thought of you quite as often while on the Florida Keys, with 

 a burning sun over my head, and my body oozing at every pore, as I do 

 now while peaceably scratching my paper with an iron-pen, in one of 

 the comfortable and quite cool houses of the most beautiful of all the 

 cities of old Scotland. 



The Florida Cormorant begins to pair about the first of April, and 

 commences the construction of its nest about a fortnight after. Many do 



