430 PROCELLARIIDZ. 
presence of vast numbers of large land-crabs that inhabit burrows all over the islands 
and would very likely destroy eggs and young of such a bird as Oceanodroma” ?. 
Another species which has white upper tail-coverts, and probably occurs within 
Central-American waters, is O. macrodactyla of Bryant, of Guadalupe Island. This 
is larger than O. kedingi, with broad black tips to the white upper tail-coverts, and 
exhibits on the wing a very conspicuous light brown patch, consisting of the median 
and greater wing-coverts. Long. tota circa 8-3, ale 6°6, caude 3:5, culm. 0-7, tarsi 0°9. 
2. Oceanodroma melania. 
Procellaria melania, Bp. Compt. Rend. xxxvili. p. 662". 
Thalassidroma melania, Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 196”. 
Cymochorea melania, Coues, Pr. Acad. Philad. 1864, p. 76°; Ridgw. Pr. U.S. Nat. Mus. v. 
p. 5384, note*; Baird, Brewer, & Ridgway, Water-Birds N. Amer. ii. p. 411 °. 
Oceanodroma melania, A.O.U. Check-l. N. Amer. Birds, 2nd ed. p. 37°; Salv. Cat. Birds Brit. 
Mus. xxv. p. 8537; Nelson, N. Amer. Fauna, no. 14, p. 28°; Oates, Cat. Eggs Brit. Mus. 
1. p. 149, t. 11. fig. 3°. 
Oceanodroma townsendi, Ridgw. Pr. U.S. Nat. Mus. xvi. p. 687 *°. 
Fuliginoso-nigra, schistaceo distincte adumbrata; remigibus et rectricibus nigerrimis; tectricibus medianis 
et majoribus apicem versus pallide brunnescentibus, his marginaliter graduatim albicanti-brunneis ; 
secundariis nonnullis intimis extus et ad apicem pallide brunnescentibus ; corpore subtus paullo brunnes- 
centiore, gutture colloque vix schistaceo adumbratis; subalaribus majoribus vix rufescenti-brunneo 
lavatis. Long. tota circa 8°4, ale 6°8, caude 3°3, culm. 0°5, tarsi 1:2. 
mari similis. Long. tota circa 8°5, ale 6°8. (Descr. maris et femine ex San Benito Is. Mus. Brit.) 
Hab. Sovutu Pactric OcEan, north to Southern California®; Lower Catirornia, Cape 
San Lucas (Xantfus?*), San Benito Is. (Anthony °).—Coasts or WisteRn MExico 2, 
Acapulco: (Townsend 1°), off San Blas to the Tres Marias (Nelson ®). 
The type of this species was redescribed by Salvin in the ‘Catalogue of Birds.’ 
O. melania is one of the larger species of Black Petrel, and the specimens in the 
Rothschild Museum have wings from 6°7 to 7:25 inches in expanse. 
Mr. Nelson writes:—‘‘ Common between Isabel and Tres Marias. Black Petrels 
were by far the most numerous of the Petrels seen, and outnumbered all the others by 
two to one. ‘Three, possibly four, other species were seen on the way to and from the 
islands, but this was the only one secured. They circled about in all directions, 
sometimes coming very near, but nothing peculiar in their habits was observed. 
They were quick to see little fragments of fat thrown overboard while we were 
skinning other waterfowl, and when the morsels were small enough ate them 
greedily ” 8. 
Eggs from San Benito in our own collection and in the British Museum, secured 
by Mr. Anthony, are broad and oval, closely approaching the elliptical form; they are 
smooth and without any gloss, plain white, and have no traces of markings °. 
