276 Transactions.— Zoology. 
_ Sometimes two petrels were inhabiting one side and the tuatara the 
other, but I never found two tuataras living in the same chamber. [am 
certain that the tuataras excavate, at least in most cases, the holes they 
inhabit, as I have watched them doing it; and, moreover, I found several 
of them in holes only half finished, without having a bird with them. In 
another instance when my dog ran after one of these remarkable lizards it 
buried itself with great celerity in a sandhill. However, I have no doubt 
that in some instances the tuataras also inhabit holes dug out by the 
petrels. The difference between the habitations of the latter compared 
with those of the former is that the petrels excavate their holes on the 
mainland and the islands under the roots of trees and scrub in rather 
loose earth, while the tuataras dig in solid and hard earth, but the form 
of the passage and of the interior are in both cases nearly alike. As 
before observed, the petrel is usually on the left side, the tuatara on the 
right side of the inner chamber; only in two cases did I find the bird on 
the right hand side. The tuataras lie also in such a manner that their 
head is placed where the passage enters the chamber, so that they can 
defend it. 
On putting one’s hand or a stick into the passage the tuatara bites at 
them furiously. One of them bit me on the finger, and the wound healed 
very slowly and was rather painful. During the daytime these lizards are 
seldom met with outside their hole, or should this be the case, never far 
from its entrance. As soon as they apprehend danger they re-enter imme- 
diately, or should this not be possible, hide amongst the roots or behind a 
Stone. In that case owing to the peculiar colour of their skin it is extremely 
difficult to detect them; in fact a well-trained dog is wanted for the 
purpose. They run very fast, and defend themselves with great pluck 
against dog or man, by biting and scratching. In unearthing them by 
digging, great care has to be taken, as they very often possess additional 
passages leading into the inner chamber, by which they are able to save 
themselves. 
As soon as the sun has set the tuatara leaves its hole to seek its food, 
consisting of worms, beetles, wetas, ete. It also feeds on the remnants of 
fishes and crustaceans brought by the petrel into the chamber. During the 
night a peculiar croaking sound is heard emanating from these lizards, not 
unlike the grunting of a pig when it is tormented or frightened ; this is the 
best time to catch them. I believe that the female of Sphenodon lays its 
eggs in February, as in January I found in one of them eight full-growD 
eggs. And I may here mention that I obtained about the same time @ 
Bate 
