THE PETREL. 213 



THE PETREL. 



The bills of this tribe are straight, except at the end, 

 where they are a little hooked. The legs are small, 

 and the wings long and strong. They fly with ama- 

 zing swiftness, and are often seen far out at sea. In 

 calm weather they sit on the water, but before, and 

 during a storm, they are constantly on the wing. 

 The females lay their eggs in holes in the ground, or 

 in the fissures of rocks. They defend their young by 

 spitting oil from their mouths in the faces of their ene- 

 mies. There are many species of this bird, differing 

 considerably in size and colour. 



STORMY PETREL. 



[ These birds are also called Mother Carey's Chickens.] 

 How large is the Stormy Petrel 3 



The Stormy Petrel is about the size of the swallow, 

 being seven inches in length, and, with the wings 

 spread, nearly fourteen inches in extent. 



What is the colour of this bird ? 



Its colour, except a spot of white near the tail, is 

 black ; the feet are yellow. 



Where is this bird found ? 



The Stormy Petrel is occasionally seen on the 

 ocean, in nearly every part of the world. Sometimes 

 it is met w r ith more than a thousand miles from the 

 land. 



There are twenty-four species of the Petrel tribe, 

 of which the present one is the smallest, being, indeed, 

 so far as is known, the least of all web-footed birds. 



This bird, among sailors, has ever been considered 

 a mysterious and ominous bird, and even at the present 



