Wild pigs go high - to at least 2000 feet - in the mountains. Many rootings in some places The stiff yellow clay would seem most unproductive of food. On all the slopes including the camp at about 1000 ft., there is only a very shallow cover of humus over the clay. The trees of the forest spread innumerable roots only partly covered by duff or humus. These roots make worn paths very uncomfortable to walk on with boots. Wed Aug 29: Some heavy rain last night; creeks murky until at least midday. Storms at intervals throughout the day, some heavy. lateral Botanized down a spur which runs from camp down to the creek. Fair results. Two species of Cyathea (4th & 5th for Sudest) and a purple-stemmed orchid among the most interesting. The rain forests of the locality seem to have a fair variety of canopy and lesser trees, but are very poor in undergrowth, lianas and epiphytes. Even the banks of the big creek are poor. A good case of geographical alternation? or perhaps the yellow clay may be an important factor? The creek rocky and and half-gorgy up to near where Lionel had his night camp. From there a sudden change to flat broad bottom & slaty (a schist) shingle. Again nothing in traps or bat nets. The nets moved to the top of the ridge above camp. Jacking last night, Rus got two Pteropus hypomelanu, Lionel a Phalanger & a Petaurus. Tonight Lionel and his boy Tibker have lo snares set in the valley to the to south of camp, where Lionel reports many small rootings in the forest. Rus did not bring any steel traps to this camp. About 3:30 this afternoon the Joe Landing Councillor & two young men arrived with mail and packages which Father Twomey put ashore this morning. A letter from Twomey. Only 41 of 56 packages shipped to us from Samarai arrived at Ninoa on the "Muniara". Twpmev does not want to transport us to Rambusc in a week's time. Has to be in the Calvados Chain at that time. Lionel will go down to the coast on Friday & go on to Nimoa to see what he can arrange. Sandflies have been bad in camp the last two mornings before breakfast. Found several small brown leeches crawling on me in the forest this morning. The boys often pick them up on their bare legs after rain. Thursday Aug 30: Bright sparkling day after a rainless night. Sandflies bad in camp Botanized down the south-winding spur to the soil above camp. Most interesting plants a big a Metrocideros? common in these rather characterless forests of the ridges, a big Gordonia & an tree-fern (Cyathea) which I think I have collected on the is- land before. No mammals in traps, nothing in Lionel's snares (a total of 25 set tonight). Lionel jacked over two hours last night for nothing. A bat net, on a new set on the spur above camp, yielded 3 Macroglossus - new for this island. For breakfast we had eels caught by Lionel's helpers last night after jacking was finished. Fried with their skin on the eels were rather disappointing, Even who gobbles up fresh meat of any kind, had only one piece. Last night in tthe same creek SE of camp Lionek caught for the collection two species of ray fish. One, large and brownish, looks like a species we took on Misima. The other, small, bluish with red behind the head above clings to the rocks in very fast water. Friday Aug 31: Another fine day with no rain in the 24 hours. The mountain clear when I saw it from the spur above camp about 7:30. At 11 the sum- mit was clouded over.