268 BRITISH BIRDS' EGGS. 



would be found to correspond in this respect with those of 

 other members of the group to which, it belongs. A pro- 

 bable opinion, however, is all we can offer to our readers 

 upon the subject. 



THE MAIS x SHEARWATER. Puffinus Anglomm. The 

 name of this bird was derived from the circumstance of its 

 formerly breeding in great numbers upon a small island 

 called the "Calf," separated from the mainland of the Isle 

 of Man only by a narrow channel ; but subsequently the 

 erection of a lighthouse upon the little island to which we 

 have referred, and the disturbance which the birds expe- 

 rienced as it became more frequented, caused them in a 

 great measure to depart, and seek elsewhere a home for 

 their young. At present they resort to the Western Islands, 

 the Orkney and Shetland Islands, and to Annet, an island 

 of the Scilly group, off the coast of Cornwall. In the first- 

 named places they select for breeding, wild and inaccessible 

 rocks, where, in holes screened from observation by tufts of 

 grass, they construct a slight nest of dry plants, at different 

 depths from the entrance, and lay a single egg of pure white. 

 On the Island of Annet they lay their eggs upon pieces of 

 fern, in burrows in the soft sandy soil. During the day 

 these birds remain quiet in their recesses, but emerge from 



