re _species_
of wood-peckers. One less than a thrush, of a black colour above,
with white spots on the wings, a crimson head, neck, and breast, and a
yellowish olive-coloured belly, from which last circumstance it might,
perhaps, not improperly be called the yellow-bellied wood-pecker.
The other is a larger, and much more elegant bird, of a dusky brown
colour, on the upper part, richly waved with black, except about the
head, the belly of a reddish cast, with round black spots, a black
spot on the breast, and the under-side of the wings and tail of a
plain scarlet colour, though blackish above, with a crimson streak
running from the angle of the mouth, a little down the neck on each
side. The third and fourth, are a small bird of the finch kind, about
the size of a linnet, of a dark dusky colour, whitish below, with a
black head and neck, and white bill; and a sand-piper, of the size of
a small pigeon, of a dusky brown colour, and white below, except the
throat and breast, with a broad white band across the wings. There are
also humming-birds, which yet seem to differ from the numerous sorts
of this delicate animal already known, unless they be a mere variety
of the _trochilus colubris_ of Linnaeus. These, perhaps, inhabit more
to the southward, and spread northward as the season advances; because
we saw none at first, though, near the time of our departure, the
natives brought them to the ships in great numbers.

The birds which frequent the waters and the shores, are not more
numerous than the others. The quebrantahuessos, gulls, and shags, were
seen off the coast, and the two last also frequent the Sound. They are
of the common sorts, the shags being our cormorant or water-crow. We
saw two sorts of wild-ducks; one black, with a white head, which were
in considerable flocks, the other white, with a red bill, but of a
larger size; and the greater _lumme_, or diver, found in our northern
countries. There were also seen, once or twice, some swans flying
across the Sound to the northward, but we knew nothing of their
haunts. On the shores, besides the sand-piper, described above, we
found another, about the size of a lark, which bears a great affinity
to the burre, and a plover differing very little from our common
sea-lark.

Fish are more plentiful in quantity than birds, though the variety is
not very great; and yet, from several circumstances, it is probable,
that even the variety is considerably increased at certain