744 LITTLE DUSKY SHEARWATER. 



Seas. Its larger and darker ally, F. obsairiis (described in the ist 

 Edition of this work), has a more extensive range, but as regards the 

 Atlantic it chiefly frequents the American side, and its most northern 

 breeding-place appears to have been in the Bermudas. It is true 

 that an example of P. obscurus, formerly in Gould's collection, is 

 now in the British Museum, and is said to have been obtained in 

 Devon, but there is no confirmatory evidence, and Gould did not 

 so much as allude to the supposed occurrence of the species in his 

 ' Birds of Great Britain.' 



On the Great Salvage Island Mr. Ogilvie Grant procured downy 

 young in various stages ; also one late egg, almost fresh, pure white, 

 perfectly oval in shape, and large for the size of the bird : measure- 

 ments I '9 by I '35. On some islets in the Cape Verde group Mr. 

 Boyd Alexander found this species breeding, not only in holes, but 

 beneath rocky boulders and in small clefts of the rocks ; and he 

 describes it as gliding like some large soft-winged bat past the camp- 

 fire, for ever uttering its weird cry karki-karrou, karki-karrou, karki- 

 karrote. 



The adult has the upper parts slaty-black, with a bluer tinge than 

 in P. obscurus ; under surface, including the under tail-coverts, of a 

 pure white, which extends over the lower part of the lores and close 

 up to the orbit of the eye, the dividing line on the sides of the neck 

 being more definite than in P. obscurus : under wing-coverts and the 

 outer portion of the inner web of the primaries white, except towards 

 the tip ; bill, black; tarsi and toes blackish, webs yellow. Length 10 '5, 

 wing 7 '4 in. 



I 



