THE STORMY PETREL. 217 



As these birds often come up immediately 

 under the stern of vessels, one can examine their 

 form and plumage with nearly as much accuracy 

 as if they were in the hand. They fly with the 

 wings forming an almost horizontal straight line 

 with the body, the legs extended behind, and the 

 feet partly seen stretching beyond the tail ; their 

 common note of weet, weet, is scarcely louder 

 than that of a young duck of a week old, and 

 much resembles it. During the whole of a wet 

 and boisterous night, which I spent on deck, 

 they flew about the after-rigging, making a sin- 

 gular hoarse chattering, which in sound resem- 

 bled the syllables, pa-tut-tu^cuk-cuk-tu-tu, lay- 

 ing the accent strongly on the second syllable 

 tut. Now and then I conjectured they alighted 

 on the rigging, making then a lower whizzing noise. 



The most singular peculiarity of this bird is 

 its faculty of standing, and even running upon 

 the surface of the water, which it performs with 

 apparent facility. When any greasy matter is 

 thrown overboard, these birds instantly collect 

 around it, facing to windward, with their long 

 wings expanded, and their webbed feet pat- 

 ting the water : the lightness of their bodies, and 

 the action of the wind on their wings, enabling 

 them to do this with ease. In calm weather 

 they perform the same manoeuvre by keeping 



