MEETINGS OF SOCIETIES. I43 



which was rather common although not abundant. About fifty-five 

 species of plants were collected, of which the most striking was 

 named Pleurophyttum criniferum, with smooth leaves something like 

 rhubarb leaves, and erect stems five feet high, carrying large disc-like 

 heads of reddish-purple flowers; it is found also on the Auckland and 

 Campbell Islands. Two plants are peculiar to this little island : a 

 pretty Gentian with yellow or red stems and leaves. The yellow- 

 stemmed form has white flowers ; that with the red stems, white 

 flowers striped with red, the result in both being that the flowers are 

 inconspicuous ; the other plant is a large herbaceous Groundsel, 

 resembling in some respects a species found on the Falkland Islands. 



(3) "On the Botany of the Snares," by T. Kirk, F.G.S. The 

 Snares consist of a group of rocky islands, situate near the 48th 

 parallel of south latitude, and about sixty-five miles from the South 

 Cape of Stewart's Island. The principal island is inhabited by 

 thousands of crested penguins, which perch on the trees in rare 

 numbers, forming ' rookeries ' during a greater part of the year, but 

 during the breeding-season the trees are forsaken. In many places 

 the ground is honeycombed by petrels, which occur in large numbers. 

 Several land-birds were noticed : a small snipe found also on the 

 Auckland Islands ; a small bird only known elsewhere on the Chat- 

 ham Islands ; and the South Island grass-bird ; all species with very 

 poor powers of flight. Two fur-seals were also noticed. The island is 

 remarkable for the occurrence of two grand trees, Senecio Muelleri, 

 which is _ probably the largest species of the genus, and one of the 

 grandest, the trunk being sometimes two feet in diameter, and the 

 tree twenty-five feet high. The other is Olearia Lyalli, which is 

 nearly thirty feet high, with leaves from four to seven inches in 

 length, white on back surfaces, and producing racemes of large 

 button-like velvety flower-heads on the tips of the branches. Both 

 these trees are amongst the rare plants of the world, the first being 

 confined to the Snares and Herekopere Island, the other to the Snares 

 and the Auckland islands. The punui is a strong growing herb, 

 which resembles in most particulars the punui of Stewart's Island. 

 The leaves are sometimes two feet across, and are carried on leaf- 

 stalks as thick as a rhubarb-stalk. About twenty-five other kinds 

 were observed, two or three of which had evidently been introduced 

 by sealers. 



(4) " On the Wandering Albatross, with an exhibition of speci- 

 mens and the determination of a new species (JDiomadea r-egia)" by 

 Sir Walter Buller, K.O.M.G., F.B.S. The paper reviewed the history 

 of Diomedea exulans, and referred to an exhibition of specimens made 

 by the author at a meeting of the Wellington Philosophical Society 

 on February 13th, 18S5, when he had expressed his conviction that 

 two distinct species of wandej ing albatross were being confounded 

 under the above name. He had lately had an opportunity of 

 examining sixteen examples of the supposed new bird (collected at 

 Campbell Island, on the Auckland Islands, and off the ]New Zealand 

 ■coast), and he had no hesitation whatever in declaring it to be a 

 distinct species, readily distinguishable from D-'umedea exulans by its 

 larger size, by its perfectly white head and neck from the nest to 

 maturity, and by its having the bare eyelids jet-black, at all ages, 



