518 



RECORD OF SCIENCE FOR 1886. 



Recent abundance of a little-hioicn Shearwater.— On\j a few years ago 

 (in 1881) a previously uuknowu species of Shearwater was discovered off 

 the coast of Massachusetts, aud made known from a single specimen 

 by Mr. Cory. It was named Puffinus borealis and it has become popu- 

 larly known as Cory's Shearwater. Not a single other specimen had 

 been obtained since, until the summer of 1886. Towards the end of 

 September, however, herring approached the shore in great numbers, 

 from Point Judith to Buzzard's Bay, and Vineyard Sound, and in their 

 wake were enormous numbers of Shearwaters and Jaegers, and singu- 

 larly enough the Shearwater proved to be almost exclusively the rare 

 Puffinus horvalis; among them, however, were a few of the Puffinus Stride- 

 landi, hut none of the Pnffimis major. "The Shearwater occurred in 

 flocks of perhaps from fifty to two or three hundred, the bunches being 

 generally found quietly resting on the water, and feeding, while swim- 

 ming, upon the herrings that were so abundant in the vicinity. They 

 were very tame, but approach to them could be best made by a steam- 

 launch, w hich would almost run over them before they would start to 

 fly. A dozen birds were killed by the discharge of two guns from a 

 launch. About a hundred specimens were secured, and thousands 

 could easily have been killed if necessary." Subsequently, the Shear- 

 water remained along with the herring and occurred " abundantly off 

 Gay Head, Menemsha Bight, Cnttyhunk, and elsewhere, both in Vine- 

 yard Sound and Buzzard's Bay." The previously excessively rare 

 Shearwater will consequently be hereafter in most of the principal 

 ornithological cabinets, for large numbers were obtained for that pur- 

 pose. (Auk IV, pp. 71-72.) 



Mammals. 



The eggs of Tachyglossus.—lt was noticed last year that the spiny ant- 

 eater or Tachyglossus of Australia has been found to be oviparous and 



