THE STRAIT OF MAGELLAN. 221 



Magellanicicm, Pernettya mucronata, Fagus antarctica, Chila- 

 hothrinm amelloides, Emhothrium coccineum, and Maytenus 

 Magellanicm). The last-named plant, belonging to the natural 

 order Celastracece, is common in the wooded region, where it 

 forms a low tree, with rather slender branches, which bear 

 ovate-elliptical, coriaceous, serrated evergreen leaves, and 

 obscure greenish flowers. Here, owing probably to its ex- 

 posed situation, it occurred in the form of compact rounded 

 bushes, as symmetrical in form as if they had been artificially 

 trimmed with gardening shears. It was a bright, frosty after- 

 noon, and the walk over the hard frozen ground was very 

 agreeable. We observed a flock of carranchas perched on a 

 clump of bushes, and a number of pretty little crested birds, 

 like tits, were hopping about, making a loud chirping. These 

 were specimens of the Anceretes parulvs, which, according to 

 Mr. Darwin, is also common in central ChilL Subsequently 

 I noticed it throughout the Strait and Channels, and also in 

 the island of Chiloe, but I never saw it in such abundance as 

 at Cape Negi'o, on this occasion. Some good specimens of a 

 fern, Aspidium mohrioides, which also occurs at the Falkland 

 Islands, were found by one of our party in a ravine in the 

 cliffs; and it is worth noting, that this was the sole locality 

 in the Strait where we encountered it. 



We left early next morning for Sandy Point, finding on 

 our arrival that the greater part of a wooden pier, which had 

 been constructed at the landing-place, had been carried away 

 by the recent gales, which had covered the beach with great 

 masses of kelp. A large party of us went on shore in the 

 forenoon, and I walked with one of the officers about five 

 miles along the coast to the southward of the settlement. 

 All the small streams and some large patches of fresh water 

 were thickly covered with ice, and the sandy beach was 

 frozen hard. Numbers of damaged shells of Voluta Magel- 



