3 The New York Years (1931–1953)

68 2 The Budding Scientist
(2) From Aitape to Finschhafen
The steamer that had been scheduled to call at Aitape a week before their arrival
had been delayed so much that Mayr and his crew were able to reach it just before
its departure. They started for Rabaul, New Britain, on 6 November. The first stop
was at Allison Island and then at Mal, one of the Ninigo Islands, to load copra.
The next halt was at one of the hilly islands of the Hermit Archipelago where the
largest island still had original forest. In Rabaul, Mayr had more time than expected
because his steamer, and before continuing to Finschhafen, had to pull a sister ship
off a reef. This permitted him to visit Father Otto Meyer (Fig. 2.9) on Vatom Island
off the coast near Rabaul who studied the bird fauna of his island and had been
in contact with the Berlin Museum of Natural History for over 20 years publishing
the results of his valuable research in several scientific journals. His invitation
ran: “You must come, because I just got 40 eggs of Megapodius which need to
be examined by a scientist—afterwards as an omelet!” He received Mayr most
cordially, and they celebrated this meeting in the South Sea with a glass of wine.
They had the most lively conversation about ornithological topics, particularly of
course about the nesting habits of the mound-building megapodes.
The steamer “Mantura” with Mayr and his crew on board left Rabaul on 3 December
reaching Alexis Harbour and Madang on 7 December and calling at Finschhafen
on 8 December. There they were received most friendly by the Protestant-Lutheran
Neuendettelsauer Mission. After two days of preparations they went up to the
Fig.2.9. Father Otto Meyer, Uatom Island, off Rabaul, New Britain (Archive, Museum of
Natural History Berlin, Orn. 121, 5)