Rambles of a Naturalist on the Shores and Waters of the China Sea: Being Observations in Natural History During a Voyage to China, Formosa, Borneo, Singapore, Etc., Made in Her Majesty's Vessels in 1866 and 1867"Collingwoood (1806-1908), Fellow of the Linnean Society, sailed as surgeon and naturalist on board HMS 'Rifleman' and 'Serpent' 1866-1867 under Cdr. Bullock on an extensive Admiralty surveying voyage of exploration in the China Seas. His research centred on marine zoology but his account of ports and harbours, people and customs of the China coast, Hong Kong and Canton, Formosa, Singapore, Sarawak, Manila and their natural history are particulary detailed. Appended is an extensive vocabulary of the native language of Sau-O Bay on Formosa's east coast, south of Keelung."--Abebooks website. |
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abundant anchor animals appearance bamboo beach beautiful beetles birds blue boat Borneo camphor character China Chinese circumstance close coast colour considerable coral crabs Crustacea cultivated curious dark delicate distance dollars Dyaks eggs European eyes feet Fiery Cross fish flying flying-fish Formosa genus green harbour head hills Hong Kong houses Hydrozoa inches inhabitants insects interesting island jungle Ke-lung Klings Labuan land less light look luminosity luminous Makung Malays miles natives nearly neighbourhood night Nudibranchs observed occasion Palm Island passed patches picul plantations plants Pratas Island probably produced Pulo reef remarkable rich river rocks round sand sandstone sandy Sarawak Sarawak river Sau-o scarcely seemed seen shells ship shoal shore side sight Singapore species specimens spot stone stream surface Ta-kau Tam-suy tion towing-net town trees Trichodesmium unfrequently usually village visible weather wings women yellow Сн
Popular passages
Page 394 - At first small gray specks or elevated gray spots (glanders-nodules), varying in size from that of a pin's head to that of a pea, make their appearance (Fig.
Page 182 - a dead specimen pinned upon a " conspicuous twig will often arrest an insect of the same species " in its headlong flight, and bring it down within easy reach of " the net, especially if it be of the opposite sex.
Page 169 - A singular circumstance occurred to the .colonial surgeon, who related it to me : he was lying awake in bed when a chick-chack fell from the ceiling upon the top of his mosquito-curtain ; at the moment of touching it the lizard became brilliantly luminous, illuminating the objects in the neighbourhood, much to the astonishment of the doctor, who had never before witnessed such an occurrence.
Page 255 - At Singapore ... the little luminous beetle commonly known as the firefly (Lampyris, sp. ign.) is common . . . clustered in the foliage of the trees, instead of keeping up an irregular twinkle, every individual shines simultaneously at regular intervals, as though by a common impulse ; so that their light pulsates, as it were, and the tree is for one moment illuminated by a hundred brilliant points, and the next ш almost in total darkness. The intervals have about the duration of a second, and during...
Page 113 - ... which was decidedly more distinct than that of the men. In all cases, the attempt of the women to pronounce English words was more successful than that of the men. The word "flint...
Page 264 - ... time, and became mere skeletons. Large outlay was expended in the endeavours to arrest the destruction, but it was all thrown away. No situation was exempt from its ravages ; hills and valleys alike suffered ; nor could any principle be traced in its promiscuous attacks. Upon a close examination of diseased parts, it is found that the formative layer inside the bark dries up and turns black ; the leaves then wither and fall off; and soon the bark is found to be full of small perforations ; but...
Page 183 - ... broken from a conflict with another male. Mr. Collingwood, in speaking of the frequent battles between the butterflies of Borneo, says, "They whirl round each other with the greatest rapidity, and appear to be incited by the greatest ferocity.
Page 30 - These eggs were about the size of goose eggs, white, with a suspicion of a blue tinge, not smooth and glossy like hens' eggs, but more or less scratched, as though the scratches were made when the external coat was soft, and had afterwards dried, preserving the marks. One nest alone contained four eggs. The poor bird sitting upon the nest would show symptoms of uneasiness as we approached, pecking the ground or coarse grass fiercely with its long, straight beak, but did not offer to quit the nest...
Page 266 - ... at Malacca, where the people were not so rich, and could not afford to manure the trees so highly, they have not suffered so severely as at Penang and Singapore.
Page 147 - Here and there was a large clam shell (Chama) wedged in between masses of coral, the gaping, zigzag mouth covered with the projecting mantle of the deepest Prussian blue; beds of dark purple, long-spined Echini, and the thick black bodies of sea-cucumbers (Holothuriae) varied the aspect of the sea bottom.