728 STORM-PETREL. 



and the Canaries, and has been traced down the coast of Africa as 

 far as Cape Town, during our winter months. Returning north- 

 ward, we find it nesting plentifully in the Faeroes, and it occurs on 

 the coast of Norway up to lat. 69° ; it also ranges to Iceland, 

 Southern Greenland, the Bay of Fundy and Newfoundland, but is 

 not known to breed along the American sea-board. 



As a rule the Storni-Petrel does not begin to lay until the second 

 half of June, and a young bird has been found in the nest as late 

 as October i8th. A slight bed of stalks of plants is sometimes 

 made at the end of a burrow in turfy soil, or beneath stones, or in 

 crevices of rocks ; but the single white egg — often faintly spotted 

 with rusty dots — is usually laid on the bare soil : average measure- 

 ments 1-15 in. by -85 in. A strong odour of musk pervades the 

 burrow and its contents. The food consists of crustaceans, molluscs, 

 small fish, and fatty matter of any kind; the last being frequently 

 obtained by following in the wake of vessels. In steamers it is 

 difficult to capture this and similar species, but when a sailing ship is 

 going slowly through the water it is not at all difficult to entangle 

 them by trailing long threads — slightly weighted at the end — from 

 the taffrail ; sailors, however, consider this proceeding unlucky, 

 although they do not necessarily connect the appearance of these 

 birds with foul weather. In captivity the Storm-Petrel has been 

 kept alive on oil for three weeks. By sea-faring folk, this and other 

 members ot the genus are known as ' Mother Carey's Chickens ' 

 (perhaps a corruption of Mater cara) ; while their habit of paddling 

 along the waves is supposed to have been the origin of the word 

 Petrel — after the Apostle Peter, who essayed to walk on the water. 



The adult has the upper parts black, except the tail-coverts which 

 are white at their bases, while the edges of the wing-coverts are slightly 

 edged with white ; under surface sooty-black, sides of vent white ; 

 bill, legs and feet black. Length 6 in. ; wing 4'6 in. The young 

 bird is rather browner, and shows little or no white on the wing- 

 coverts or vent. Mr. J. H. Gurney jun. has an albino example. 



