animals, to which was added Actinia natans. I again saw undoubted proofs that the albatrosses eat Holothuriæ or Portuguese men-of-war,[1] as the seamen call them. I had also an opportunity of observing the manner in which this animal stings. The body consists of a bladder, on the upper side of which is fixed a kind of sail, which he erects or depresses at pleasure: the edges of this he also at pleasure gathers in, so as to make it concave on one side and convex on the other, varying the concavity or convexity to whichever side he pleases, for the conveniency of catching the wind which moves him slowly upon the surface of the sea in any direction he wishes. Under the bladder hang down two kinds of strings, one smooth, transparent and harmless, the other full of small round knobs, having much the appearance of small beads strung together: these he contracts or extends sometimes to the length of four feet. Both these and the others are in this species of a lovely ultramarine blue, but in the more common one, which is many times larger than this, being nearly as large as a goose's egg, they are of a fine red. With these latter, however, he does his mischief, stinging, or burning, as it is called. If touched by any substance they immediately throw out millions of exceedingly fine white threads, about a line in length, which pierce the skin and adhere to it, giving very acute pain. When the animal thrusts them out of the little knobs or beads which are not in contact with some substance they can pierce, they appear very visibly to the naked eye like small fibres of snow-white cotton.
13th. Shooting as usual, but saw no new bird except a gannet, which came not near me. Of these for four or five days past I have killed a good many; indeed, during the whole time they have been tame and appeared unknowing and unsuspicious of men, the generality of them flying to the boat as soon as they saw it, which is generally the case at great distances from land. Took up Dagysa vitrea and gamma, Medusa radiata and porpita, Helix ianthina, very large Doris complanata, and Beroe biloba: saw a large shoal
- ↑ See footnote, p. 15.
