PETRELS. 255 
Petrel is a close sitter, remaining in its hole until 
dragged out. It is also crepuscular in its habits at 
its nesting-places, becoming lively at dusk, when it 
may be seen flitting to and from the sea in a silent 
bat-like manner. So far as is known, the breeding 
area of the Stormy Petrel is exclusively confined to 
the islands and coasts of the East Atlantic. 
MANX SHEARWATER. 
The Shearwaters are a well-defined group of 
Petrels, numbering twenty or more species, dis- 
tinguished by their long, slender bill, long wings, 
and short tails. As the Fulmars bear a superficial 
resemblance to the Gulls, so may the Shearwaters 
be compared with the Auks. Four of these birds 
are known to visit the British seas and coasts, but 
only one of them, the Manx Shearwater, Puffinus 
anglorum, is known to breed within our limits, and 
to occur in any abundance. The upper parts of 
this Shearwater are black, the lower parts white. 
The Manx Shearwater is, so far as is known, a 
resident in the British seas, and widely distributed 
along our coasts during the season of reproduction. 
Like its allies, the Petrels, this Shearwater is closely 
attached to the open sea, living for the most part 
away from shore, and only frequenting land during 
its nesting period. Its flight is much more erratic 
and rapid than that of the small Petrels, or the 
Gull-like Fulmar, and reminds one more of the 
Swift.. It may be seen dashing impetuously along 
