General notes on South Pacific island groups
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Transcription
-112- end of July, 1825, and Dixon reports "The tropic bird, phaeton," as one of the regular breeders. SULIDAE. Sula piscator (Linnaeus). A skin in Brit. Museum, collected by "A." Campbell. Sula, species. Dixon refers to "Three sulus or boobies, white, black, and grey" among the regular breeding species of the island, and observes that the gray booby was the only bird on the island to build a nest. FREGATIDAE. Fregata, species. The 'Blonde' party found a "new species", which they called (but did not describe) "Pelicamus candida"; this was breeding at the end of July, 1825, when it had eggs. Dixon lists the "frigate bird, Tachepetes aquilis" as a regular nesting species, with eggs in Dec. and June. ?ACCIPITRES. Dixon enumerates "a bird somewhat like a kestrel hawk, which lived on lizards", as an occasional visitor. STARBUCK ISLAND. STERNIDAE. Onychoprion fuscatus (Linnaeus). MacFarlane found it breeding on Oct. 15. {He did not land, but could see a "Wide-awake fair" from the ship, and shot one bird from a boat.