308 ANSERES. PROCELLARIAD.E. 



birds are said to be taken as they sit on the ledges 

 of the rocks, by means of a noose of horse-hair 

 attached to a slender rod of bamboo-cane. This 

 mode is most successful in wet weather, as the 

 Puffins then sit best upon the rocks, allowing a 

 person to approach within a few yards, and as 

 many as three hundred may be taken in the course 

 of one day by an expert bird-catcher. They are 

 sought principally for their feathers,* which, like 

 those of all these and similar birds, are copious, 

 soft, and downy ; and therefore well adapted for 

 beds. 



FAMILY IV. PROCELLARIAD.E. 



(Petrels.) 



The form of the beak in these birds is very 

 remarkable, as it appears to be constituted of 

 several distinct pieces : the upper mandible has 

 the basal portion separated from the tip by a deep 

 oblique furrow, and carrying on its summit, a 

 tube (or two united into one) which contains the 

 nostrils ; the point of this mandible takes the 

 form of a curved and pointed claw or nail ; the 

 lower mandible is likewise seamed in a similar 

 manner, and its tip is hooked downwards. 



The fore-toes are united by a membrane, the 

 hind-toe is rudimentary, and reduced to a mere 

 claw, which is elevated upon the tarsus. The 

 wings are usually long, and the flight powerful. 



The Petrels are eminently oceanic birds, wan- 

 dering over the boundless seas in all latitudes, 

 rarely approaching the land except in the breeding 



* Macgillivray. 



