SHELL-FISH. 



S89 



The shell-fish,* for which this island is justly famed, are 

 principally brought from Calbuco, and consist of the finest 



a bright yellow colour. All the specimens that we saw, and numbers were 

 killed by us, had a black beak with a red cere — otherwise M. Lesson'^s 

 description is correct. In many specimens, however, we found the tip of 

 the primary wing feathers black,^ which is not to be wondered at when 

 the colour of the female is considered, but which it is not an easy task to 

 describe. M. Lesson, I think, has done it justice in a note to his vol. ii. 

 p. 409 : — " Anas antarctica. A capite griseo, genis gulo colloque albo et 

 nigro acuti-striatis ; oculorum circuitu nudo : pectore abdomineque 

 omnin6 atris, atque vittis niveis notatis : tectricibus alarum nigris ; dorso 

 uropygio caudaetano albis ; alls niveis cum speculo lato virescente, brun- 

 neo marginato ; pennis longis aterrimis; rostro et pedibus, aurantiacis." 



These birds are very common in the Straits of Magalhaens, and every 

 where on the west coast between the Strait and Chiloe ; also at the Falk- 

 land Islands. 



The Cancania (or Canquefui) is the Anas Magellanica, Anser Magella- 

 nicus (Ency. Meth. p. 117). From BufFon's description, and a well-drawn 

 but badly-coloured figure, in the Planches Enluminees, No. 1006, T have 

 no hesitation in assigning it to that kind. The colour of the head, how- 

 ever, instead of being 'reddish purple,' is cinereous with a reddish hue ; 

 the feathers of the sides and thigh covers are white, with five black bars^ 

 the extremity being white ; the central portion of the abdomen is white ; 

 the speculum of a splendid shining green. This bird is common to the 

 Strait as well as to Chil6e, and is probably Byron's * Painted Duck,' and 

 the Anser pictus of the Ency. Melh., p. 117. M. Lesson considers Anas 

 leucoptera, Gmel. as the male of Anas Magellanica y which maybe doubted. 

 The * Barking Bird,' as our sailors called it, was first brought to me by 

 Capt. Stokes, having been shot during the Beagle's visit to Port Otway, in 

 the Gulfof Penas. It was an imperfect specimen ; but Mr. Tarn afterwards 

 obtained for me several others. It seems to have a great affinity to the 

 genus Megapodius ; but no specimens of that genus being in England when 

 I was last there, and the Barking Bird differing in essential points from 

 M. Tenminck's description of the genus, and from the figured specimen of 

 Megapodius Freycinettii ; — particularly in the length and form of its wings, 

 which are rounded, and so short as not to reach beyond the base of the 

 tail ; — also in the emargination of the upper mandible ; — I have been in- 

 duced, by Mr. Vigors' advice, to form it, provisionally, into a new genus, 

 termed Hylactes, (See Proc. Zool. Soc, vol. i. p. 1 5.) There is another spe- 

 cimen in our collection (now in the Zoological Society's Museum), which 

 will probably be placed in this genus, but there existed some uncertainty in 

 essential points, which prevented my describing it before I left England. 

 * Among the numerous testaceous productions is a small shell, which 

 VOL. I. U constitutes 



