ANIMALS THAT LIVE WITHOUT WATER 169 



in about half the volume of water which would be re- 

 quired for its excretion in the urine. 



The nasal gland has been shown to have a salt- 

 secreting function in the cormorant, herring gull, and the 

 Humboldt penguin (Spheniscus) y and such a function 

 is inferred from the gland's gross and microscopic anat- 

 omy in the peHcan (Felecanus), eider duck (Somateria), 

 and petrel (Oceanodroma) . Within a single genus such 

 as the gull (Larus), the size of the gland increases with 

 the extremeness of marine habitat. 



Apropos of this remarkable adaptation in the marine 

 birds, it may be noted that, unlike the elasmobranch 

 fishes and the Jurassic ichthyosaurian reptiles, no ovovi- 

 viparous bird is known among the recent or fossil birds 

 (though the avian fossil record is admittedly one of the 

 most incomplete chapters in paleontology, being limited 

 to two fossils!). 



Notable among the truly marine birds is the albatross, of 

 which two species (the Laysan albatross, Diomedea im- 

 mutabilis, and the Black-footed albatross, D. nigripes) 

 nest on Midway and Laysan Islands. The albatross was 

 dubbed the Gooney Bird by sailors because of its pre- 

 sumed lack of intelligence; in captivity, however, it 

 proves to be intelligent, adaptable and easily trained, the 

 contrary impression probably stemming from its awk- 

 ward gait, mischances in landing from flight, and ex- 

 treme docihty. It is the largest and strongest of all sea 

 birds, and early explorers of the South Seas were cheered 

 by its companionship, a bird often accompanying a ship 

 for days without alighting on the water and, by tradi- 

 tion, even sleeping on the wing. The albatross was con- 

 sidered a good omen, and the evil fate of him who shot 

 one with the cross-bow is familiar to readers of Cole- 

 ridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner. 



When about eight or nine months old the albatross 

 abandons island life for the open sea, where it may re- 

 main for five or even seven years, subsisting entirely on 



