Bontekoe appears to have considered these birds identical with the Dodos of Mauritius,
and the slowness of pace and shortness of leg, which his description implies, hardly agree
with what we know of these Bourbon birds. But as we have no other proof of the existence
of the Dodo in Bourbon, and as Bontekoe’s account must have been written from memory
(for his ship was afterwards blown up, and he was the sole survivor), we must not look for
scientific accuracy in his statement. The probability is, that when he in after years compiled
the narrative of his perilous adventures, having a recollection of a large brevipennate bird in
Bourbon, whose tameness rendered it an easy prey to his sailors, he concluded it to be the
Dodo, and adopted the name and descriptions of that bird which had been given by previous
navigators.
3. We have next to notice the narrative of a Frenchman, named Carré, who visited
Bourbon in 1668, and relates as follows :—
“ J’ay vû dans ce lieu une sorte d' oiseau que je n'ay point trouvé ailleurs : c'est celuy que les
liabitans ont nommé l'Oiseau Solitaire, parce qu' effectivement il aime la solitude, et ne se plait que
dans les endroits les plus écartez; on n'en a jamais vû deux ni plusieurs ensemble; il est toujours
seul. Il ne ressembleroit pas mal à un Coq d'Inde, s'il n'avoit point les jambes plus hautes. La
beauté de son plumage fait plaisir à voir. C'est une couleur changeante qui tire sur le jaune. La
chair en est exquise : elle fait un des meilleurs mets de ce païs-là, et pourroit faire les délices de nos
tables. Nous voulûmes garder deux de ces oiseaux pour les envoyer en France, et les faire présenter
à Sa Majesté; mais aussi-tôt qu'ils furent dans le Vaisseau, ils moururent de mélancolie, sans vouloir
ni boire ni manger.''—Voyages des Indes Orientales par M. Carré, 2 vols. 12mo. vol. i. p. 12. See
also Prévost, Hist. Gén. des Voyages, vol. ix. p. 3.
Translation :—
Í I here saw a kind of bird which I have not found elsewhere : it is that which the inhabitants call
the Oiseau Solitaire, for, in fact, it loves solitude, and only frequents the most secluded places. One
never sees two or more of them together ; they are always alone. It is not unlike a Turkey, were it
not that its legs are longer. The beauty of its plumage is delightful to behold. It is a changeable
colour, which verges upon yellow. The flesh is exquisite; it forms one of the best dishes in this
country, and might form a dainty at our tables. We wished to keep two of these birds to send to
France and present them to His Majesty, but as soon as they were on board ship, they died of melancholy,
having refused to eat or drink."
It will be observed that Tatton describes these birds as white. Carre’s expression,
“ une couleur changeante qui tire sur le jaune,” is rather vague, but seems to imply a pale
yellowish or cream-coloured tint, which another author might easily have described as white.
At any rate there seems no reasonable doubt that Tatton and Carré both described the same
species of bird.
4. In the year after Carré’s visit, a French colony was sent from Madagascar to Bourbon
under M. de la Haye. One of the party, who calls himself the Sieur D. B., has left an
interesting account of the expedition. His journal is contained in a MS., given by Mr. Telfair
Ch. III.] BIRDS IN BOURBON. 59
to the Zoological Society of London, which I hope will not be allowed to remain much longer
unpublished. He not only confirms the accounts given by Tatton, Bontekoe, and Carré, of
a brevipennate bird in Bourbon, but gives us a clear proof that a second species of the same
group of birds inhabited that island. Speaking of the land-birds of the island, he
enumerates,
1. “ Solitaires: ces oiseaux sont nommés ainsi, parce qu'ils vont toujours seuls. Us sont gros
comme une grosse Oye, et ont le plumage blanc, noir à l'extrémité des ailes et de la queue. A la
queue il y a des plumes approchantes de celles d'Autruche, ils ont le col long, et le bec fait comme
celui des Bécasses, mais plus gros, les jambes et pieds comme poulets d'Inde. Cet oiseau se prend à
la course, ne volant que bien peu.
2. “ Oiseaux bleus, gros comme les Solitaires, ont le plumage tout bleu, le bec et les pieds rouges,
faits comme pieds de poules, ils ne volent point, mais ils courent extrêmement vite, tellement qu'un
chien a peine d'en attraper à la course ; ils sont très bons."1
Translation :—
1. “ Solitaires. These birds are so called because they always go alone. They are the size of a
large Goose, and are white, with the tips of the wings and tail black. The tail feathers resemble those
of an Ostrich; the neck is long, and the beak is like that of a Woodcock, but larger; the legs and
feet like those of Turkeys. This bird has recourse to running, as it flies but very little.
2. “ Oiseaux bleus, the size of Solitaires, have the plumage wholly blue, the beak and feet red,
resembling the feet of a hen. They do not fly, but they run extremely fast, so that a dog can hardly
overtake them ; they are very good eating." *
I should have been disposed to refer the “ Oiseau bleu ” to the genus Porphyrio, were
we not told that they were the size of the Solitaire, i. e., of a large Goose, that the feet
resembled those of a hen, and that they never fly. Moreover, Bory St. Vincent in his list of
the Birds of Bourbon (Voy. aux quatre Iles de la Mer d’Afrique, vol. i.), makes no mention
of any species of Porphyrio.
It is evident from these statements,
1st, That Bourbon was formerly inhabited by a brevipennate bird called the Solitaire,
whose white or light yellow plumage, and Woodcock-like beak proves it to have been
distinct from the Dodo of Mauritius and from the so-called Solitaire of Rodriguez.
2ndly, The account given by the Sieur D. B. seems to imply that this bird possessed
some, though very imperfect, powers of flight ; but as Tatton and Bontekoe distinctly assert
the contrary, we may presume that this statement of the former author was inaccurate.
And 3rdly, it is clear that a second brevipennate species, the “ Oiseau bleu ” of Sieur D.B.,
was also a native of Bourbon, though from its speed in running it probably escaped the
notice of the earlier voyagers.
5. Of this Oiseau bleu, the only other indication which I have met with is in Rees’
Cyclopaedia, art. “ B ourbon,” where it is stated that in Bourbon there is “ a kind of large
1 This passage was first published in a paper which I communicated to the Zoological Society, Apl. 23, 1844.
(Proc.Z. S. pt. xii. p. 77.)
R