I 18 



BLACK-FOOTED ALBATROSS (Diomedea nigripes; choices 4 and 4', pg. 26) 

 occurs from the southern Bering Sea to southern Baja California, though 

 not as abundantly south of the California Channel Islands. Specimens 

 could be encountered at any time of year but mostly during summer. 



LAYSAN ALBATROSS (Diomedea immutdbilis; choice 2', pg. 26). A 

 specimen found south of Oregon would be worthy of note but the event is 

 very possible at least as far south as the California Channel Islands. 

 Otherwise the species mainly occurs along the North American coast from 

 the Aleutian Islands south to Oregon. It is most likely to be en- 

 countered during fall and spring. 



FULMARINE PETRELS (PROCELLARIIDAE, subfamily FULMARINAE) 



These birds are characterized by their rather stout, heavy bills that have 

 an intricate series of separate sections (as shown in the PLATES). As a 

 person, not too familiar with birds, described to us once in referring to 

 a fulmar, he had found a "sea gull with its bill cracked in several 

 places". The large, single tube enclosing the nostrils on the top of 

 the bill (Plate 5) and the tarsi that are rather round in cross-section 

 also distinguish fulmarine petrels from similarly sized and colored 

 shearwaters. The cigar-shaped bodies (including tail) with long, slender 

 wings separate fulmarine petrels and shearwaters from the similarly sized 

 but plumper, more broad-winged and generally more strikingly colored 

 ducks. All petrels, including shearwaters, storm-petrels, etc., possess 

 such a distinctive odor that once one is familiar with it, one can smell 

 it even on very old carcasses. 



CAPE PETREL (Daption oapense; choice 10, pg. 28). On very rare 

 occasions (once every ten years or so) individuals of this species (a 

 breeder on islands in south polar seas) are reported off the western North 

 American coast. Its striking, black and white checkered plumage make it 

 perhaps the most unmistakeable bird discussed in this manual. 



NORTHERN FULMAR (Fulmarus glacial-is; choicesl3'-14' , pg. 29) is one 

 of the most commonly encountered birds along the entire length of the 

 western North American coast during the winter and early spring. Even 

 during summer and fall, finding an occasional individual is to be expected. 

 They probably occur in ice-free areas of the Bering Sea year round, but 

 otherwise occur there mostly during late spring, summer and fall. 



Any specimen possessing a head, because of the bill characteristics 

 (see keys and Plate 5-1), cannot be mistaken for any other species 

 (except maybe the Southern Hemisphere SILVER-GRAY FULMAR, which is not 

 known to occur in this area). A headless specimen in dark-phase plumage 

 could be confused with one of the dark shearwaters, and one in light- 

 phase plumage could be confused with an adult gull. The latter, however, 

 is not likely if one is aware of the longer less-broadly proportioned 

 wings of the Fulmar and the characteristic odor of petrels. On the other 



