40 A MANUAL OF THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 



and fully feathered, the unguis fairly strong and decurved. The wing is long with 

 the first primary longest. The tail is faintly wedge shaped, the two middle feathers 

 absolutely the longest, and the two outside shortest ; the upper -tail coverts extend 

 to about two-thirds its length, the under fully as long. The legs are short, fairly 

 compressed laterally, the toes fully webbed, the webs narrow, the outer and middle 

 subequal, the inner shorter ; claws long and narrow, that of the middle toe the 

 longest. 



Coloration bluish-grey above, white below with the fore-head mottled and side 

 of face white ; the tips of the tail white. 



30. Halobaena caenilea. BLUE PETREL. 



Gould, Vol. VII., pi. 52 (pt. xxix.), Dec. 1st, 1847. Mathewa, Vol. II, pt. 2, pi. 91, July 

 31st, 1912. 



Procellaria ccerulea Gmelin, Syst. Nat., Vol. I., pt. n., p. 560, April 20th, 1789 : Southern 



Ocean 47 to 58. 



Procellaria forateri Smith, 111. Zool. South Africa, pi. LIII., July 1840 : Cape Seas. 



Not Latham, Index Ornith., Vol. II., p. 827, 1790. 



Procellaria aimilis Forster, Descr. Anim., ed. Licht., p. 59, (pref. Jan. 1st) 1844: Antarctic 



Ocean. 



Halobcena cceridea victorice Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. III., pt. 3, p. 54, April 7th, 1916 : 



Victoria. 



Halobcena murphyi Brooks, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. Han'., Vol. 61, p. 146, June 1917 : South 



Georgia. 



DISTRIBUTION. Southern Australian Seas. 



Adult male. General colour above pale blue-grey ; lesser and median wing- 

 coverts darker than the back, like the bastard-wing and primary -coverts ; greater 

 wing-coverts like the back ; the four outer primaries dark brown on the outer 

 webs, white on the inner ones, with black shafts ; inner primaries blue-grey like the 

 back ; secondaries mostly white with grey on the outer webs, innermost secondaries 

 like the back ; the long scapulars tipped with white ; tail blue-grey broadly tipped 

 with white, more narrowly on the outer feathers, the outermost pair are white, dusted 

 with grey at the tips ; crown of head and feathers surrounding the eyes blackish, 

 more or less mixed with white on the latter ; fore-head variegated with brown and 

 white, imparting a scalloped appearance ; lores, chin, sides and upper neck as also 

 the under-surface of body white, including the axillaries and under wing-coverts ; 

 sides of lower neck blue-grey like the back ; bill bluish-black, the latericorn of the 

 maxilla distinctly bluish. Legs and toes pale cobalt-blue ; webs pink in the centre, 

 grey borders at the free edges. Total length 275 mm. ; culmen 25, wing 209, tail 

 85, tarsus 29. 



Adult female. Very similar to the adult male but the upper-surface not so dark 



Nestling. Covered with slate-coloured down. The newly -hatched young have 

 bill and toes slaty-blue, with apparently pale-yellowish webs and brownish-black 

 claws. The horny speck upon the bill is whitish, and situated high above the tip 

 of the bill. The region about the base of the bill is largely denuded. They begin to 

 hatch out about November 12th. 



Nest. A burrow (excavated beneath the mounds of the umbelliferous plant 

 Azorella selago) running straight inwards for a foot or more, then turning sharply 

 to the right or left, parallel with the hill-side, thence downwards, often doubling 

 once or twice upon themselves, and communicating with other entrances. At the 

 bottom is an enlarged cavity, lined with fine root-fibres, twigs, ferns, or leave* of 

 the " Kerguelen tea," and quite dry. 



Egg. Clutch, one ; white and glossless ; axis 44 mm., diameter 32. 



Breeding-season. October and November. 



Distribution and forms. Round the Sub-antarctic Circle, but a rare bird in 



