A BIRDLOVER'S YEAR 



these birds make the utmost use of the 

 momentum acquired by a few powerful 

 strokes of the wing, whilst they take all 

 possible advantage of the wind, and progress 

 largely by a gliding movement. He also 

 adds that they move their wings more 

 frequently than is generally supposed. In 

 the breeding season the albatrosses repair 

 in large numbers to remote islands and 

 isolated oceanic rocks ; there they take up 

 their abode in separate pairs. The nest is 

 said to be cylindrical, made of tufts of grass, 

 &c., with a shallow cavity on the top for 

 the bird to sit on. It contains only one egg, 

 which is white in colour, occasionally with 

 red spots, and rather larger in size than 

 that of a goose. The male birds are re- 

 ported to stand or sit near their brooding 

 partners, and an interesting point to notice 

 is that during incubation the egg is held in a 

 kind of pouch. 



The petrel family (Procellariidse) differ in 

 a few points from the albatrosses. The 

 largest member is the giant petrel (Ossifraga 

 gigantea), which measures thirty- two inches 

 in length, with a wing-span of about sixty- 

 six inches. This bird is distinguished on 

 28 



