no. 3605 SEABIRDS — GILL 15 



Oceanites oceanicus Wilson's Petrel 



Five scattered individuals were seen south of the subtropical con- 

 vergence in early April (see table 8). None were seen in the Arabian 

 Sea in January and February, but in May a flock of more than 50 

 Wilson's petrels was passed between Bombay and Karachi and still 

 others were found near the African coast dming the last week of May. 



Pelagodroma marina Frigate Petrel 



Nine frigate petrels were seen in late May between Karachi and the 

 Seychelles Islands (see table 8). Instead of the characteristic grey, 

 they appeared "light brown" to my eye. 



Fregetta grallaria White-bellied Storm Petrel 



Several dark storm petrels with white rumps and bellies were seen 

 near Amsterdam and St. Paul Islands and in the waters to the south 

 (see table 8). Although I had excellent looks at some of these, I 

 was unable to discern any black in the middle of the white underparts. 

 An additional 10 Fregetta species (probably F. tropica: see Bailey, 

 1966, p. 243) were seen in the Arabian Sea (and vicinity) between 

 May 22 and June 2. 



Oceanodroma monorhis Swinhoe's Storm Petrel 



On two occasions (00°58' N, 55°00' E, on Feb. 9; 10°46' S, 55°00' E, 

 on Feb. 18), I saw an all-dark storm petrel with a forked tail and very 

 fast, erratic flight. Bailey (1965) found two species of all-dark 

 storm petrels, the smaller of which was 0. monorhis, verified by the 

 capture of specimens. It seems reasonable, therefore, to assign 

 my two observations to this species. 



Oceanodroma matsudairae Matsudaira's Storm Petrel 



Scattered individuals (12 total) of an unidentified storm petrel were 

 seen between latitudes 07° 17' N and 21°00' S; over one-half of these 

 observations were made near the equator (see table 9). This petrel 

 was the size of a large Oceanodroma (or Bidweria bulweria) but was 

 not nearly as large as B. fallax. It was entirely dark brown in color 

 though some individuals had conspicuously paler upper wing coverts. 

 The flight was deliberate, almost sluggish, consisting of four or five 

 deep wing strokes followed by a short glide with the wings bowed 

 downward. The tail appeared either square or slightly forked. 



Bailey (1964, 1965) observed a large Oceanodroma commonly in the 

 vicinity of the equator from March to May 1964 and suggested that 

 it was 0. matsudairae from the Pacific. Since then, two specimens 

 confirming: this tentative identification have been collected in the 



