138 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OP 



and its bibliography is as explicit as that of almost any of the eighteenth cen- 

 tury species of the family. First indicated with tolerable accuracy in Linnsean 

 times, the species has almost invariably been presented under its original and 

 proper specific title, though referred successively to the genera Puffin us, Nec- 

 tris, and Ct/motomus. The names "Vherminieri" of Lesson, and "floridanus" 

 of the Berlin Museum, which I quote upon the authority of Bonaparte, are the 

 only specific synonyms which I have met with. 



There is an unusual and remarkable discrepancy in the statements of vari- 

 ous authors concerning the length of the species, diiferent writers giving the 

 dimension from as little as 93 inches to over 13. It is impossible that it 

 should vary to this extent. I believe the average length is a little over eleven 

 inches. 



Audubon's description of this species is sufficiently pertinent, but the plate 

 he gives is unusually poor, and by no means true to nature. The outline of 

 the bill is exceedingly faulty ; the line of demarcation of the dark and light 

 colors along the side of the head and neck is by no means accurate, and the 

 lower tail coverts are represented as entirely white. The exact insertion of 

 the right tibia of the individual figured has always been to me, anatomically 

 speaking, a puzzle. 



Dr. Kuhl informs us, in the text, that figure 11 of plate ix- of his Mono- 

 graphie der Procellarien was intended as a representation of the bill of this 

 species ; which is fortunate, as otherwise it would be quite impossible so to 

 identify it. 



I am much surprised at the statement by Dr. Degland, (Ornitholo?ie Euro- 

 peene, ii. page 366, published in 1849 !) that " cette espece est peu connue, et 

 il n'est pas certain qu'elle est distincte de la prccedente " P. anglorum ! 

 This author's indication of the habitat of this species is vague, and leaves 

 much to be desired. 



M. Temmiuck (Man. Ornith., ii. p. S08"> gives, under head of P. obscurus, 

 an excellent description of this species, except that the dimensions are inaccu- 

 rate, being far too small.* The exact measurements of both of Temminck's 

 typical examples are given by Dr. Schlegel in his recent monograph of the 

 Procellaridse, (Mus. Pays-Bas, p. 30.) This author finds that one of the types 

 is an example of anglorum, from the Mediterranean Sea, afterwards labelled by 

 Temmiuck himself a P. Baroli, Bonelli ; and that the other is a small, weak- 

 billed specimen of the true obscurus, from the Atlantic Ocean. These facts, 

 supported by the authority of one so well known for diagnostic acumen as 

 Dr. Schlegel, ara indicative of an imperfect acquaintance on the part of Tem- 

 miuck with the species he treats of under the name obscurus. 



The species of Puffinus spoken of in a paper published by Dr. D. W . Pren- 

 tiss and myself in the Annual Smithsonian Report for 1861, (p. 418), as hav- 

 ing occurred at Washington, D. C, and doubtfully referred to as the obscurus, 

 has since been definitely ascertained to be this species. 



Description. Form : The bill is rather small and weak, and considerably 

 compressed, except just at the base. In length along the culmen it measures 

 just about two-thirds the skull, and about three-fourths the tarsus. It is 

 quite stout at the base, where the height very decidedly surpasses the width. 

 The unguis rises rapidly and a little suddenly above the rest of the culmen, 

 and is strongly convex in outline. The commissure, from the insertion of the 

 feathers to the unguis, as well as the outline of the lower mandible as far a3 

 the unguis, is almost perfectly straight. The nasal tubes are short, being 

 much less than a fourth the length of the culmen, but they are elevated and 

 quite conspicuous, much more so than in anglorum. The wings barely reach, 

 when folded, to the end of the long tail. The proportionate lengths of the 

 primaries are the same as in most other species. The tarsus is just as long as 

 the middle toe without its claw. The outer toe with its claw is just as long 

 as the middle one with its claw. The top of the inner claw about reaches the 



* " Longueur, " ii peupres 10 pouces." 



[April, 



