Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.1): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

SHEIX-FISH. 289 The shell-fish,* for which this island is justly famed, are principally brought from Calbuco, and consist of the finest a bright yellow colour. All the specimens that we saw, and numbers were killed by us, had a black beak with a red cere — otherwise M. Lesson's description is correct. In many specimens, however, we found the tip of the primary wing- feathers black, which is not to be wondered at when the colour of the female is considered, but which it is not an easy task to describe. M. Lesson, I think, has done it justice in a note to his vol. ii. p. 409: — "Anas antarctica. A capite griseo, genis gulo eolloque albo et nigro acuti-striatis ; oculorum circuitu nudo : pectore abdomineque omninS atris, atquevittis niveis notatis : tectricibus alarum nigris ; dorso uropygio cauda et ano albis ; alis niveis cum speculo lato virescente, brun- neo marginato; pennis longis aterrimis; rostro et pedibus, aurantiacis." These birds are very common in the Straits of Magalhaens, and every where on the west coast between the Strait and Chiloe ; also at the Falk- land Islands. The Cancania (or Canquehu) is the A71US Magellanka, Anser Magella- nicus (Ency. Meth. p. 117). From Buifon's description, and a well-drawn but badly-coloured figure, in the Planches Enluminees, No. 1006, I have no hesitation in assigning it to that kind. The colour of the head, how- ever, instead of being 'reddish purple,' is cinereous with a reddish hue ; the feathers of the sides and thigh covers are white, with five black bars, the extremity being white ; the central portion of the abdomen is white ; the speculum of a splendid shining green. This bird is common to the Strait as well as to Chil6e, and is probably Byron's ' Painted Duck,' and the Anser pictus of the Ency. Meth., p. II7. M. Lesson considers Anas leucoptera, Gmel. as the male of Anas Ma ffellanica, which maybe doubted. The ' Barking Bird,' as our sailors called it, was first brought to me by Capt. Stokes, having been shot during the Beagle's visit to Port Otway, in the Gulf of Penas, It was an imperfect specimen ; but Mr. Tarn afterwards obtained for me several others. It seems to have a great af&nity to the genus Megapodius; but no specimens of that genus being in England when I was last there, and the Barking Bird difi'ering in essential points from M. Tenminck's description of the genus, and from the figured specimen of Megapodius Freycineltii ; — particularly in the length and form of its wings, which are rounded, and so short as not to reach beyond the base of the tail ; — also in the emargination of the upper mandible; — I have been in- duced, by Mr. Vigors' advice, to form it, provisionally, into a new genus, termed Hylactes. (See Proc. Zool. Soc, vol. i. p. 1 5.) There is another spe- cimen in our collection (now in the Zoological Society's Museum), which will probably be placed in this genus, but there existed some uncertainty in essential points, which prevented my describing it before I left England. * Among the numerous testaceous productions is a small shell, which VOL. I. U constitutes