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Contributed by American Museum of Natural History.
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Transcription
-192-
(It had been feeding on nutmegs, and gave them the first clue,
apparently, to the presence of nutmegs on Tanna.) On Aug. 16th,
they went" into the woods on the plain. We saw a great number
of large and beautiful parroquets, of black, red and yellow
plumage; but they kept on the tops of the highest fig-trees,
where they were wholly out of the reach of small shot, guarded
by the thick foliage." He says the trees were at least 150 feet
high. This woods was in a marshy place; and a pond nearby
"was likewise the abode of rails and ducks, of which we could
ever obtain any, though they appeared to be of a new species."
They went on through the plain, keeping on its western part, and
then into a forest. "Here we shot a species of wild dove hither-
to unknown to naturalists, and saw some parroquets, which were
excessively shy." Still farther, they came to a large fig-tree,
where "a prodigious number of birds, of a very diminutive size,
fluttered about on its uppermost branches, and picked off the
fruit." They fired at birds while under this tree, but he does
not say they got any. On August 17th, "we passed some time in a
fine plantation of bananas close to the western corner of the b
beach, where a number of parrots destroyed the fruit; but they
were so extremely shy, that we attempted in vain to come at them."
On August 19th, the party went into the interior some distance,
and in a cluster of trees found "Their branches were the resort
of various birds, adorned with the brightest colours," etc. As
a general observation, Georg Forster remarks that the woods of
Tanna "contained a variety of birds, especially several sorts of
pigeons, parroquets, and fly-catchers. Among the latter we
found a species which is likewise to be met with in New Zealand.
The Ceylanese owl, a species of creeper, a sort of duck, and a
purple water-hen were like-wise seen; but all in general were
remarkably shy, which seems to indicate their being pursued by
the natives."
Very likely the shyness or friendliness of birds will
prove to be of some assistance in fixing the relative time of
man on various islands. We know the birds of the Galapagos were
excessively tame at the time of Darwin's visit, but here in the
New Hebrides, at the time of Cook's voyage, they were very wild,
and probably continue so to this day. Let us hope that Rollo
H. Beck will, through mature consideration of the evidence,
supply the world with some data that will help it through.