miles, from which a reef extends to the West-North-West, leaving the
mouth of the harbour exposed only between North-West by North and
West-North-West. Our observations placed the centre of the sandy beach on
the north-east side of the island in latitude 20 degrees 37 minutes 47
seconds South and longitude 2 degrees 0 minutes 20 seconds West of Swan
River, variation 2 degrees westerly; and the time of high-water, at the
full and change, at half past ten, when the tide rose 15 feet, but only 5
during neaps.

NEW BIRD AND KANGAROO.

Although Depuch Island had been visited before, there still remained
something quite new to reward the diligent search that was made after
objects of natural history: namely, a small kind of kangaroo, a land
bird, and a shell, a species of Helix. The bird was shot by Mr. Bynoe; it
was a finch,* and beautifully marked with stripes of crimson down the
breast, on a black ground with white spots; the throat, and a patch round
the stump of the tail, were crimson. It is remarkable that all the beauty
and brilliancy of colour in this bird is underneath, the back being of a
common earthy brown.

(*Footnote. Named by Mr. Gould from this specimen, Emblema picta.)

The kangaroo I had myself the good fortune to knock over on the summit of
the island; it was the only one shot during many an excursion made over
that dreary heap of desolation, the metallic sound the rocks yielded to
our step giving ample warning of our approach to their quick ears. The
colours of this specimen, the prettiest we had seen, were a dark grey,
with a large angular patch of white down the side, extending from the top
of the shoulders nearly to the hips. Down the centre of the back, ran a
streak of black, which was also the colour of the extremity of its
slightly bushy tail. The face and belly were likewise darker than other
parts of the body, and the feet were black and well cushioned, giving it
a firm hold of the rocks over which it bounded with surprising agility,
through it never ran very far, always popping into the cavities caused by
the loose manner in which the blocks forming the island are thrown
together.*

(*Footnote. Mr. Gould has figured an animal very like this I have
described, as Petrogale lateralis, or the Stripe-Sided Rock Wallaby, from
a specimen he some time afterwards got from Western Australia; but he has
not noticed the beautiful kangaroo of Depuch Island.)

The specimen of the species of Helix I have