99. the CG readings were the same. Went out last night and marked the two Blue-faced Boobies sitting in the area with the wooden triangle behind the fuel tanks. - study area 2. (SA2) One was a NAF ?. They were marked as follows: ♂ orange mark on breast - 737-98171 ♀ orange ring around NAF mark - 697-24529. 22 Jan., 1965 This AM I cleaned our little shack - it once again looks quite presentable. I hope it remains this way. After lunch we took weights, measurements, ectopara- sites from 6 Black-feet, blood from 5 of these - the other's heart was too deep. These birds are quite a bit bigger than the Laysans, and not as difficult to work with. They have real neat Mallophaga - large and shiny black- on their wings. These beasts crawl off onto the person holding the bird, but drop off fairly soon. There were some reddish and quite small ectoparasites around the head that were most likely mites. The Blue-faced Boobies are most active, as far as arrival is concerned, about 1600. I got many picutes - ots of Ol Sky-calling (he lost his ♀), it seemed that tout la monde was Sky-calling as birds poured in - often 5 or 6 in the air over the colony. R19 was with O3 for some time this evening, but R20 got her back after all 3 birds flew off fro about 10 minutes. Catching rats for autopsy this PM. Some very interesting light on the Gooney back rot problem. While scouting about for rats, found a 'sick' gooney with rats all about him. I shut out my light and sat down to watch, waiting a few moments before shining the headlight back on the gooney. When I did so, many rats scampered off his back where they had been feeding. Sitting quietly, with the light on, I could see rats approach the live bird, crawl up his back, and feed on the exposed flesh. Every now and then the bird would twitch, turn back to try and get the rats, and then look forward again, the rats eating unperturbed. There must have been 20 of them on the gooney. Do the rats initiate the problem, or merely capitalize on, for them, an opportune meal. I wish I knew, but it appears in lieu of this that the rats are a bigger factor than hitherto supposed.