HARDmCKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



^95 



Gymnadenia conopsea, Habenaria clilorantlia, Lis- 

 tera ovata, Orchis maculata, Scilla nutans, Veronica 

 cliamEedrys, V. officinalis, Buniam flexuosum, Lotus 

 corniculatus, Potentilla tormentilla, Rumex acetosa, 

 Potentilla fragariastrum, Rubus fruticosus, R. Idseus, 

 Scabiosa succisa, Achillea millefolium, Polygala eu- 

 vulgaris. Origanum vulgare, Hypericum montanum, 

 Prenanthes muralis, Alchemilla vulgaris, Centaurea 

 nigra. Prunella vulgaris, Hypochx-ris radicata, Ga- 

 lium saxatile, Droserarotundifolia, Pinguicula vulgaris, 

 Rhinanthus crista-galli, Gentiana Amarella, Trifo- 

 lium pratense, T. repens, T. filiforme, Linum 

 catharticum. Ranunculus acris, R. bulbosus, R. 

 flammula, Narthecium ossifragum, Cardamine pra- 

 tensis, C. impatiens, Euphrasia officinalis, Heracleum 

 sphondylium, Qinanthe crocata, Anemone nemorosa, 

 Ajuga reptans, Hieracium (sp. undetermined), H. 

 pilosella, Carduus palustris, Chrysanthemum leucan- 

 themum, Pedicularis palustris, P. sylvatica, Spir^a 

 ulmaria, Plantago lanceolata, Hydrocotyle vulgaris, 

 Caltha palustris, Myosotis repens, Calluna vulgaris, 

 Orobus uberosus, Cerastium tri\iale, Melampyrum 

 pratense, Viola sylvatica, Vicia cracca, Sanicula 

 EuropEca, Bellis perennis, Stellaria Holostea, Sphag- 

 num, Juncus squarrosus, at least two Carices (sp. 

 undetermined) ; of grasses, Festuca duriuscula, F. 

 ovina, Anthoxanthum odoratum, Dactylis glomerata, 

 Cynosui'us cristatus, Briza media, Holcus lanatus, 

 Aira csespitosa; and of ferns, Pteris aquilina, Las- 

 trsea filix-mas, L. Oreopteris, Athyrium filix-fcemina. 



In all eighty species ; but we did not take into 

 account the hedges nor the trees. It likewise grew 

 too dark to see any more, and we were obliged to 

 give up our search, no doubt missing several species 

 which would probably have brought up the list to 

 very nearly one hundred. 



Robert Holland. 



N'oi-Con Hill, Runcorn. 



THE PETREL SPECIES OF SEA-BIRDS. 

 By p. Q. Keegan, LL.D. 



WHEN the broad bosom of the Atlantic is up- 

 heaved with storm, above the foamy crests 

 of the waves may be discerned the dark, diminutive 

 figure of the Stormy Petrel. The wings of the bird 

 seem uplifted as if in flight, but his long black web- 

 feet paddle playfully upon the surface of the water, 

 as if in sport. With rapid flight, as of an anow, he 

 skims the waves, now settling for an instant on their 

 foamy crests, now coursing swiftly o'er the watery 

 waste. Far off among the rolling billows he spies a 

 ship looming, and, prompted by instinct or a foregone 

 pleasurable experience, he wends his way thereto, 

 and hovers round about the stem and sails. The 

 motion of the vessel, and the shelter furnished 

 thereby, subserve the bird's purposes admirably ; for 

 as it ploughs its way amid the waves, stray mollusks 



and crustaceans are frequently upturned, and these 

 the petrel coveting, pounces down upon and con- 

 sumes with evident relish. His vision is keen, too, 

 for any oily matter thrown overboard the ship, and, 

 IDrompted by his native partiality for it, he follows 

 for days and days the source whence it flows. 



When the storm abates, the Petrel disappears. His 

 temperament prompts him to seek some lonely spot 

 upon shore or islet, or, perhaps, among the masses of 

 seaweed that drift upon the bosom of the ocean. 

 There he lies intrenched, till storm and darkness 

 summon him to bear them company again. 



The members of the Petrel genus of sea-birds are 

 rarely to be discerned inland, or even upon the coasts 

 of the larger continents and islands, except during 

 the breeding season, which in our latitudes seems to 

 occur twice in the year — viz. about June and August. 

 Immediately after the occurrence of unusually severe 

 storms, however, some stray specimens of Petrel have 

 been discovered either dead or in a very exhausted 

 condition at various places tolerably far inland, or 

 adjacent to our coasts. I may mention that several 

 breeding-places of the Stormy Petrel have been dis- 

 covered along the western coast of Ireland ; for 

 instance, on Tory Island, the Galway and the Kerry 

 coasts, &c. 



The genus Thalassidroma, to which the Petrel 

 tribe belongs, has been divided into four sub-genera 

 — viz., Daption, Thalassidroma, Ungellus, and Pro- 

 cdlaria. I propose, however, confining my attention 

 exclusively to the four British species of the sub- 

 genus Thalassidroma, and, in the first place, we 

 shall specify some of their distinguishing characteris- 

 tics, as follows : — 



The Forked-tail Petrel {Thalassidroma Lcachii), 



which occasionally occurs on the British coasts, is 



characterized by the possession of a black bill and 



dark-brown irides ; while the head, neck, back, 



breast, and belly are of a sooty-black colour. The 



wing-coverts are of a rusty-brown colour, the tertials 



tipped with white ; the upper tail-coverts white ; the 



primaries and tail-feathers black.; while behind each 



thigh there is" an elongated patch of white. The 



tail is forked, the outer feathers being about half an 



inch longer than those in the middle. This species 



is about seven inches long. Wilson's Petrel ( T. Wil- 



sonii) has the head and all the lower parts, the back, 



scapulars, wings, feet, bill, and iris of a black colour ; 



all the upper tail -coverts are pure white ; the tail is 



nearly square, the three lateral feathers being white 



at their base. On the membranes of the feet there 



is a long yellow stain, and the edges of the toes are 



bordered with the same colour. This species is about 



six inches long. Bulwer's Petrel {T. Biihverii) is 



extremely rare in England. The Stormy Petrel 



(71 pelagica) is characterized by having the head, 



back, wings, and tail dull black ; the lower parts, 



bill, and feet are sooty black. There is a large band 



of pure white on the rump, while the scapulars and 



K 2 



