THE STRAIT OF MAGELLAN. 443 



it was only raining slightly, Dr. Campbell and I landed, as 

 usual encased in mackintoshes and sea-boots, and had a long 

 ramble over the nearer and lower ranges of hills. The rain 

 soon increased in vehemence, and lasted throughout the whole 

 time we were on shore, but the comparatively open nature of 

 the ground rendered walking not so fatiguing as usual, although 

 water was squeezed out of the soil wherever we placed our 

 feet. We came across a number of deep lakes of no great 

 size, several of which were connected in a chain by means of 

 a rapidly flowing stream. The principal plants observed 

 were stunted specimens of Metrosideros stipularis, evergreen 

 and antarctic beeches, Embothrium coccineum, and Lomatia 

 ferruginea, together with a variety of the universally distri- 

 buted bog-plants. A few geese, some black starlings {Curmus 

 aterrimtbs), and many of the little creeper {Oxyurus), were 

 seen, the last mentioned hopping about the stunted bushes in 

 small flocks, and accompanying us from place to place. On 

 the 7th heavy rain fell throughout the day, during which I re- 

 mained on board, and the same was the case on the 8th, the 

 afternoon of which I spent on shore. I was much interested 

 on the latter day by observing some tadpoles in the pools of 

 water on the boggy ground, showing that Amphibia extended 

 as far south in this wet region (the climate and vegetation of 

 which are almost identical with those of Fuegia) as lat. 51° S. ; 

 and two days later one of the men, a zealous collector of 

 objects of natural history, brought me specimens of the 

 little striped frog {Nannophryne variegata) discovered the 

 previous season at Eden Harbour, as weU as an example of 

 the genus Hylodes, which Dr. Giinther considers as identical 

 with the H. Uptopus (Bell), of which but a single specimen, 

 in a very bad condition, previously existed in the British 

 Museum, procured by Mr. Darwin at Valdivia, to the north of 



