714 CAPPED PETREL. 



satisfactory. No other occurrences are recorded from Europe, and 

 in fact little is known of the distribution or head-quarters of this 

 species. An example from Hayti is in the British Museum ; Paris 

 has three obtained by L'Herminier in the island of Guadaloupe, 

 where, however, Mr. Ober failed to rediscover the bird ; there is a 

 fourth in Paris and a fifth is in Leiden, from unknown localities ; 

 while in the United States a wounded individual was picked up 

 on a salt lagoon on the east side of Florida in 1846, and another 

 was shot on Long Island in July 1850, after a severe storm. 



It is almost unnecessary to add that we have no information 

 respecting the breeding-habits of this species, but it probably resorts 

 to burrows in the mountains of tropical islands. Many of the 

 Petrels appear to frequent the land merely for the purposes of repro- 

 duction, after which they disperse over the ocean and can seldom 

 be obtained or identified ; while their breeding-seasons seem so little 

 subject to rule (within the tropics) that the best period for search 

 cannot be laid down. In case any of my readers should ever have 

 the opportunity of landing on any of the small islands nearest the 

 coast of Brazil known as Trinidad, Martin Vas &c., in about 

 20° 30' S. lat. and 29^^ W. long., they will probably make some 

 interesting discoveries in Petrels, even if they do not meet with 

 this particular species. It is no doubt nocturnal in its habits. 



The adult has the beak black ; crown and nape dark brown, 

 cheeks and ear-coverts greyer ; mantle dark brown ; rump and tail- 

 coverts white ; central tail-feathers chiefly brownish-black, the rest 

 more or less white on their basal portions, but broadly edged with 

 brown ; forehead and under parts white ; legs and feet dusky- 

 yellow. Length 16 in., wing i2"25 in. The immature bird is be- 

 lieved to be mottled with brown on the forehead and to be duller in 

 tint on the upper parts. 



An example of the Petrel familiarly known as the Cape Pigeon 

 {Daption capensis), is recorded by Mr. A. G. More (Ibis, 1882, 

 p. 346) as having been shot near Dublin on the 30th October 1881 ; 

 and Degland and Gerbe state that three specimens have been 

 obtained in France. There does not, however, appear to be 

 any adequate reason for including this species among the Birds of 

 Great Britain, or even of Europe, for its home is essentially the 

 southern hemisphere ; and although it is known to follow ships, for 

 the sake of food, for a considerable distance, yet it is equally certain 

 that many birds, captured with hook and line, are then carried far 

 beyond their usual area before being restored to liberty. 



