no. 3605 SEABIRDS — GILL 11 



but most of these seemed to be P. carneipes; however, 40 shearwaters 

 seen resting on the water on Apr. 20 were identified as this species. 



Piiffinus griseus Sooty Shearwater 



In early April south of the subtropical convergence we encountered 

 several dark brown shearwaters with whitish underwings, short 

 rounded tails, and flutter-and-glide flight. They were most common 

 near Amsterdam Island (5-6 total) but single birds also were seen 

 at 3S°01' S, 79°19' E, at 40°04' S, 75°00' E, and near St. Paul Island. 

 I have identified tentatively these shearwaters as P. griseus rather 

 than P. tenuirostris on the basis of the whitish as opposed to grayish 

 underwing coloration. Neither of these species occurs regularly in 

 the Indian Ocean though it seems likely that P. griseus could stray 

 northward from the Antarctic regions, where it is abundant during 

 migration (Oordt and Kruijt, 1953). 



Puffinus assimilis Little Shearwater 



A single small, black and white shearwater with flutter-and-glide 

 flight was seen at 33°52' S, 55°05' E, on Mar. 8. Large numbers 

 (250 + ) of P. assimilis were found in the waters close to St. Paul 

 Island. 



Three specimens with slightly enlarged gonads were taken from the 

 flocks feeding just off the coast of St. Paul Island on Apr. 7, 1964. The 

 soft part colors were as follows: bill light greyish blue; feet bright blue 

 with pink webs and some blackish on the underside; irides brown with 

 bluish outer ring. The weights (in grams) and measurements (in 

 mm) are included in the table below: 



The two stomachs examined both contained the remains of many tiny 

 cephalopods. 



Conspicuous white edgings were present on the terminal portions 

 of the dark grey feathers of the upperparts and in this respect, as well 

 as mensural characters, the specimens resemble P.a. munda as de- 

 scribed by Murphy (1927). George E. Watson, who kindly compared 

 the one skinned specimen 5 with available material, writes that 

 it "agrees exactly with two 'munda' collected February 16, 1926 

 at 49° S, 179' W by Beck and Correia (AMNH 211648, 211652). 



6 Careful comparison of the three specimens before preservation revealed no 

 differences in plumage pattern or coloration. 



