THE STEAIT OF MAGELLAN. 41 



smooth stems of the cabbage-palm. Not far from the beach 

 was a huge mass of detached rock, on the top of which many- 

 cacti and aloes were growing, and on the overhanging sides 

 some wasps were busily engaged building their mud cells. From 

 the roof of a neighbouring well I procured two curious Arach- 

 nida with hard spiny bodies, the Phalangium acanthopus, of 

 Quoy and Gaimard. As the tide fell, towards the close of 

 the afternoon, a few rocks were left partially uncovered, and I 

 waded out to those in search of marine animals, obtaining fine 

 specimens of Purpura licemastoma, Littorina Jlava, and a 

 species of Ostrcea, as well as a couple of sponges, one of which 

 was pale violet in colour, and the other deep orange. Many 

 specimens of a species of Isopod, allied to Ligia oceanica (pro- 

 bably L. haudiniana) were found under the stones in shallow 

 water, and several examples of a crab of the genus Grapsus were 

 seen but none taken, as they escaped into clefts of the rock, 

 from whence they could not be dislodged. Among the few 

 Algse observed, was the widely-distributed Codium tomen- 

 tosum, which I afterwards met with in the Strait of Magellan. 

 Next morning several of the ojQ&cers landed on a small 

 island in the vicinity, and one of them brought me from 

 thence a very fine specimen of a swimming-crab {Ziipa spini- 

 mana), which must be tolerably common, as the following year 

 I noticed the species in the Eio market. On the afternoon of 

 the same day we steamed out of the harbour, passing not far 

 from the precipitous island of Eedonda, and thereby gaining 

 a good view of the general aspect of its vegetation, which ap- 

 pears to consist principally of palms. The following morning, 

 there being a good north-easterly wind, the screw was got up, 

 and we proceeded under sail. In the afternoon a large whale 

 made its appearance in our immediate vicinity, displaying its 

 dorsal fin and purplish-brown back. The wind continued 



