BIRDS OF THE BAHAMA ISLANDS. 
21 
CHAPTER III. 
EXUMA KEYS. 
January 6. — The sea was as calm as a mill-pond, hardly rippled 
by the light breeze, which was barely sufficient to propel our vessel 
with sufficient speed to prevent her drifting upon the reefs. We had 
arrived in sight of Highburn Key, and as we moved slowly along 
within a short distance of the shore, we examined it with the pleasant 
anticipation which any naturalist experiences upon the first sight of 
a little-known land. The island appeared deserted ; not a bird was 
in sight, and the song of a single Mocking-bird, borne faintly to us 
from the interior, was the only sound that broke the almost perfect 
stillness. I had hoped to find birds abundant here, but after 
rambling over the key for several hours, and finding only a few 
Mocking birds and* Honey Creepers, we returned to the boat, rather 
dissatisfied with our first excursion. These keys, although rarely 
visited, are very pretty. Cocoanuts and bananas abound, and can 
be generally obtained, conchs are abundant, and fair fishing is to 
be had ; but these little islands, which, later in the season, are 
fairly covered with bird-life, are almost deserted in winter. 
Norman’s Key, Shroud Key, etc., passed in succession, showing 
the same geological formation and desolate appearance. On some 
of them, birds were common, but appeared to be confined to two or 
