524 PALMIPEDES. 



they eagerly seize, and will suffer themselves to be drawn 

 out with it rather than quit their hold. 



As is the custom with most diving birds, the Puffin 

 lays only one egg, and always deposits it in some deep 

 burrow. 



The appearance of an island frequented by these birds 

 is thus graphically descriljed by Audubon : — " On every 

 crag or stone stood a Puffin, at the entrance of every hole 

 another, and yet the sea was covered and the air filled by 

 them. The burrows were all inhabited by young birds of 

 different ages and sizes, and clouds of Puffins flew over 

 us, each individual holding a small hsh by the head. The 

 burrows all communicated in various ways with each 

 other, so that the whole island was perforated as if by a 

 multitude of subterranean labyrinths, over which we could 

 not run without the risk of falling at almost every step. 

 The voices of the young sounded beneath our feet like 

 voices from the grave, and the stench was extremely dis- 

 aefreeable. During the whole of our visit the birds never 

 left the place, but constantly attended to their advocations. 

 Here one would rise from beneath our feet ; there, within 

 a few yards, another would alight with a fish, and dive 

 into its burrow, or feed the young that stood waiting at 

 tlie entrance.^' 



The typical species of this sub-family is — 



The Arctic Puffin, or Coulterneb {Puffinus arcticus). 



