BERNERAY, a small island of the Hebrides, lying on the north side of North Uist, and separated from it by a channel about one and a half fillies broad. This island, which has a filesh water lake, called Lochbruis, in its centre, is about four miles long and one and a half broad. This lake contains swarms of eels, which are often caught by the inhabitants twined together in heaps.
The tides at this island present some singular phe nomena. About four days before and after the moon is in quadrature with the sun, between nine o'clock in the morning and nine at night, the tide runs east ward for twelve hours successively : At nine o'clock at night the current changes its direction, and runs westward till nine o'clock next morning. This phe nomenon is daily repeated till the moon is within four days of her syzigy, when the tides resume their re gular course, flowing to the west during the six hours of ebb, and to the east during the six hours of flood.
Between the vernal and autumnal equinox, the tides at the quadratures flow eastward during the day, and westward during the night, while, from the au tumnal to the vernal equinox, they move to the west during the day, and to the east during the night. Population of Berneray and Ratby, 494. in 1792. West Long. 7° 8', North Lat. 57° 4.2'. Sec Mac leod's account of the parish of North Uist, in the Statistical Account of Scotland. (j) BERNIER's ISLAND, a small island near the mouth of Shark's Bay, on the west coast of New Holland, which received its name from the officers in the French expedition of in 1801. This island is partly precipitous towards the east, and partly surrounded by frightful breakers on extensive reefs, against which the waves dash with great vio knee from a wide expanse to the west. The sub stance of the island of horizontal beds of sand and limestone, containing many shells, all as re gularly shaped as if formed of hewn mason work. Most of the shells encrusted in them are univalves, and chiefly bek.ig to the genus natice of Lamarck : and they bear much resemblance to those of the same kind still found alive at the foot of the rocks in the sea. From their intimate adhesion to the masses in volving them, and from being found at 150 feet above the present level of the sea, naturalists conclude that they have existed in a state of petrifaction during ages. Strata of a sort of calcareous breccia, suscep tible of a sufficient polish, and of pleasing coloured shades, are seen in other parts of the island. The whole surface of the island covered with a bed of quartzose sand, mixed with calcareous remains also, which having been originally light and move able by the winds, forms a circle of sand-hills all around the shores between sixty and eighty feet high. But to prevent the disorders that would ensue from the perpetual change of these heaps, nature, amidst the low and languishing vegetation of the island, here produces a species of cyperus, whose long roots, universally interlarded throughout the ground, form an immense reticulation, which restrains them in their position, and binds the loose soil together. A fari
naceous grain, somewhat resembling wheat, crowns the summit of this plant, in ears as large as the fist : but owing to the aridity of the soil, perhaps, it had not come to maturity, and each of the ears scarcely afforded two or three seeds. The French conceived that it might be profitably naturalised in the sandy districts of France and Spain, and there prevent the light soils from shifting with the wind. A singular spinifex growing in the most arid places, and compo sed of an innumerable quantity of leaves, extremely slender, in great mossy tufts, and a mimosa rising two or three feet from the ground, but spreading fifteen or twenty around, form the more remarkable of the few plants growing in the island. A beautiful quadru ped, thefascrated kangaroo, inhabits this island in numbers, though it is not to be seen on the continent, nor on any other islands excepting two in the neigh-, bourhood. It is excessively timorous; the slightest noise alarms it, and sometimes a breath of wind will put it to flight. Yet this little animal, though timid in self-defence, boldly resists the injury which is of fered to its young. The females, like others of their genus, are provided with an external pouch, whither the young retire on the approach of danger : when wounded and feeble with the loss of blood, she could carry it no longer in flight, the mother assisted her offspring to get out of the bag, that it might at tempt its own escape : or, when forcibly separated, on regaining a place of safety, she would call to it by a peculiar sound, and after affectionately caressing it, as if to dissipate its alarm, cause it to enter its wonted place of shelter. Even when these animals get a mortal wound, their care was diverted from exer tions for their own safety, and directed solely to the preservation of their young. Several young kangaroos were taken on Bernier's Island, but only One of the whole survived : it became very tame, and fed readily on bread, besides which it greatly relished sugar and water. Owing to an accident, it perished in the course of the voyage to which we have allu ded ; nevertheless, the species might possibly be na turalized in Europe. In this island neither birds nor reptiles arc numerous, being principally cormo rants, sea•eagles, and three lizards, one of which is between four and five feet long. The seas, which wash the shores of the island, abound with mollusca, and fishes from whales down to microscopic polypi: and testacea, together with zoophytes, are found on the rocks, or deep in the waters. There is an edible oyster of very uncommon figure and delicious taste, solidly adhering to the former, and beautiful uni valves are dragged up from the mud wherein they lie concealed. The mytilus cffidgens, the finest hi therto discovered, is among them, of a shining co lour, and reflecting all the prismatic colours. (c)