32 OCEAN BIRDS. 



primaries, deep brownish black ; back of the neck, side of the chest, back, wings, and tail, 

 grey ; the secondaries, scapularies, and six middle tail-feathers, tipped with white ; the two 

 outer tail-feathers almost wholly white, and the shafts of all black ; bill dull blackish brown, 

 with a stripe of blue-grey along the lower part of the under mandible ; tarsi and toes, delicate 

 blue ; interdigital membrane flesh-white, traversed by red veins." In the Natural History 

 Museum it is called the Square-tailed Blue Petrel {Halobcena ccendea). It is constantly confused 

 at sea with Prion inetur, and consequently generally misnamed "Whale-bird." 



Wedge-tailed Petrel (Thiellus sjAenui-us).-- In the Natural History Museum this bird is 

 represented by a specimen marked P.. chlororhynchus. It is thus described by Gould: — 

 "All the upper surface dark chocolate-brown, which gradually deepens into black on the 

 primaries and tail ; feathers of the scapularies, which are very broad in form, washed with 

 lighter brown at their tips ; face and throat, dark brownish grey ; the remainder of the under 

 surface greyish brown ; bill reddish fleshy-brown, darker on the culmen and tip ; legs and feet^ 

 yellowish flesh-colour. Total length, fifteen inches and a half; bill, one inch and five-eighths ; 

 wing, eleven inches and a half ; tail, six inches ; tarsi, one inch and seven-eighths ; middle 

 toe and nail, two inches and three-eighths." 



Cape Petrel {Daption capensis). — This charming little Petrel abounds in all the temperate 

 latitudes of the Southern Seas, and is universally known by the name of Cape Pigeon. The 

 first I ever saw was very many years ago, and as far north as lat. 11-22° S. For days he 

 followed us, defying our efforts to capture him. When on the feed though (as for instance, 

 after a "Cape blow," when air sea-birds are ravenous), they can be caught in any number; 

 and I remember once a sailor catching four in his hand, so tame and venturesome had they 

 become. I think it is Lord Pembroke, in the 'Earl and the Doctor,' that describes Cape 

 Pigeon-fishing by a sort of rule-of-three sum. As Cape Pigeon-fishing is to Albatross-fishing, 

 so is Trout-fishing to Salmon-fishing — a red quill on a hair-line, instead of a jock-scot on 

 treble-gut, but the modus operandi the same. I always found the very best hooks you can have 

 for all these smaller Petrels are the trio, and the smallest you can get ; so I strongly advise 

 those about to take a voyage (and interested in this kind of sport) to take plenty of them, from 

 the largest size down to the very smallest. Of course you must cover each of the three barbs 

 with bait, as in Albatross-fishing. Dr. Coppinger was much surprised to see them "dive 

 bodily down, apparently without the least inconvenience," trying to get some submerged 

 morsels of food. I have often had them take a bait like this, and get hooked too. He also 

 says, "A freshly-caught Cape Pigeon, placed on its legs on the deck, seems to forget utterly 



