On the northern side of the bay, where much of our collecting was done, we found, behind the houses, a number of paths leading among coconut and pandanus palms, tangled grass, and bushes. Beyond this scrub, in which gaudy-leaved crotons were not uncommon,[63] was the jungle, fairly open, but without any large trees. The land in the neighbourhood of this coast, and probably as far as the hills inland and on the eastern side, which rise 800 feet, is of very recent formation, and consists of almost undecayed coral _débris_ mixed with sand and vegetable loam, a compound scarcely sufficiently fertile to support a heavy forest at present. Pigeons and glossy starlings were common, and we obtained specimens of a small forest hawk which had not been met with on the more open island (_Astur_, sp. nov.): we shot also a new chestnut myna (_Sturnia_, sp. nov.), somewhat similar to that met with on Kar Nicobar. Grackles (_Eulabes intermedia_), of which only one specimen on Nankauri had yet been seen, were fairly numerous, and the presence of a drongo, the first of its kind observed since leaving the Andamans, was recorded. Numbers of Blyth's dove (_Macropygia rufipennis_) frequented the scrub near the village. We were astonished to find the crops of all those shot completely filled with large red chillies only. It is almost impossible to conceive anything more pungent than a red pepper, and the bird must have an extraordinary interior to patronise such a diet exclusively. This unusual food had no effect on the flesh, for its flavour in no way differed from more rationally feeding members of the same species. Now and again we would have visitors on the schooner, for in the evening people often came on board to watch us as we sat preparing specimens, and although on these occasions we generally obtained information from the natives concerning the locality and their customs, they were, as a rule, more bent on satisfying their own curiosity than our desire for knowledge. One man showed us a ring, about 1-1/2 inches in diameter, of a bone-like substance, and related a story about it of some large jungle-dwelling animal, from whose eye, or eye-socket, it was made. "This animal," he said, "was bigger than a pig, and very scarce"; further than that he was not intelligent enough to give a description! Another native, "Yassan" by name, brought a letter originally belonging to his father, and written by de Röepstorff, who is now almost forgotten. Yassan was more intelligent than his companions, and we made arrangements with him to obtain for us a collection of charms and curiosities.