874 THE KAEDING PETREL. 
sloping and climbable upon the south. The top has an area of something over 
an acre, and is unique for the abundance and uniformity of a rank grass which 
occupies the greater portion centrally. The grass has a stoutly-projecting 
midrib so that it stands up at a height of two and a half feet, its roots being 
imbedded in a covering of its own waste to a depth of six or eight inches more. 
Circling all about this central bed is a border of close-set wiry turf, while a 
narrow stretch of the dwarf salmon-berry bushes, peculiar to this coast, 
occupies the extreme crest of the slope upon the north. 
Immediately upon arrival our attention was called to tiny openings in the 
grass, the orifices of subterranean burrows. Sometimes the entrance was 
clear-cut and open, with a little runway beneath paved (more by accident and 
use perhaps than by design) with little pebbles; but as often the mouth of the 
burrow was hidden by a tangle of interlacing grass-stems. The tunnels are 
about two and a half inches wide at the mouth, and run in from two to three 
feet. They seldom run straight but twist about at random, widening as they 
proceed, until a considerable nesting chamber is reached. 
Here, according to the season, may be found two adult birds, a bird and 
an egg, or a bird and young. In the first case it is the male bird keeping com- 
pany with his mate for several weeks before the single egg is laid. During 
this honeymoon it is possible that the birds dine out together; but when the 
egg is laid, the male spends the day at sea, visiting his brooding mate only at 
late nightfall. Likewise, after the chick is hatched, it is the male who pro- 
vides the food for mother and babe until such time as the rising appetite of the 
junior troglodyte requires the services of both parents. 
At the time of our visit most of the nests contained young chicks accom- 
panied by their mothers, but some held eggs on the point of hatching. 
When removed from the nest, the parent bird appears dazed and blinded, 
and seldom seeks to escape by flight. Taken into the hand, it jams its head 
into the recesses of the fingers, thinking only of cover. Placed upon the 
ground, it pokes about the grass in a fidgety, near-sighted way looking for a 
hole, and does not scruple to enter the hole of a neighbor rather than remain 
under surveillance. Once one flew from the hand and made off to sea with 
a bewildered, hesitant motion, a jerkiness somewhat similar to that of a 
Nighthawk at close quarters. Others I threw into the air, and they too made 
off to sea sheepishly, like waifs caught sleeping on a park bench and told to 
move on. 
In no instance did the mother betray any interest in her young, or realize 
that it, too, was in the same plight. Now and then birds bit us, but their bills 
were not strong enough to inflict injury. When molested, Petrels eject an 
ill-smelling oil, which either proceeds from or involves the nostrils in its dis- 
charge. This in turn is followed speedily by the contents of the crop, if such 
