THE OPEN SEA 85 



autumn that the young bird is able to leave the 

 hole and fend for itself, a very prolonged 

 infancy which shows us that the nesting-place 

 must be well hidden. In this connection it 

 should be noted that the parents fly straight 

 into the hole when they come in from the sea 

 and leave in the same direct way. They are 

 sometimes quite noisy as they fly about at 

 night, but they know the safety of darkness. 

 They come and they go in dim light, at dusk 

 and at dawn. Most elusive birds ! 



There is no doubt that the Storm Petrel 

 belongs to a family of ancient birds, with a long 

 pedigree going far back to some kinship with 

 an extinct, giant, toothed Diver (Hesperornis 

 of Cretaceous times). Like its relatives, such 

 as the shearwaters, it has held its own by 

 becoming highly specialised in its everyday 

 habitat and also in its way of feeding on small 

 surface animals of the Open Sea. It is very 

 interesting to find among its relatives a Diving 

 Petrel (Pelecanoides), remarkably but decep- 

 tively like a Little Auk, which has become a 

 most expert diver, disappearing instantaneously, 

 swimming swiftly with its wings under water, 

 and emerging again in flight a brilliant 

 instance of the way in which survival is secured 



