476 THE DIVING BIRDS — PYGOPODES. 



Puffins' holes and crevices of tlio rocks. When he passed the Mnrre Rocks, a large 

 proportion of the myriads of birds flying around the ship were Auks, easily distin- 

 guished, even at a long distance, by their bill. As the two species thus breed indis- 

 criminately together, many of the eggs coming from the rocks where the Mnrre nests 

 are in reality those of the Auk. There is no difficulty, however, in distinguishing 

 tliem from each other. The egg of the Auk never has a green or a blue groiuid-color, 

 but is always Avhite, spotted and blotched with dark umber, and seldom or never 

 streaked. It is also more elliptical, much less pointed, and somewhat smaller. The 

 Razor-bill lays by preference in the cracks and crevices of rocks, but also in company 

 with the iSIurres on the bare rock, and with the Puffins in their deserted holes. He 

 found young, tliat had been hatched out but a short time, on the 2Gth of July. On 

 being wounded, or taken in the hand alive, this bird utters a loud hoarse cry, and 

 tights and scratches most furiously, biting with great force, its strong hooked bill 

 enabling it to inflict a severe wound. Dr. Coues found tlie flesh of this bird well 

 flavored, and not possessing the slightest rank or fishy taste when thorougldy stewed. 

 He never noticed more than a single egg. The eggs, thougli ditt'ering in their mark- 

 ings, are comparatively uniform in their size and sliape, about 3.00 inches in length 

 by a little less than 2.00 in breadth ; the ground-color is either pure white or with a 

 creamy tinge, and the spots are of different shades of umber-brown. 



Eggs of this species have a ground-color varying from a dull buffy white to a 

 pale greenish buff, or a buffy white with a greenish tinge. They are usually boldly 

 marked with large blotches of blacikish brown, burnt-umber, and lavender-gray. They 

 do not usually vary much in their general appearance or size, and their shape is 

 ly 1 almost always exactly oval. Typical eggs in my (jollection from Labrador measure : 



2.92 by 1.80 inches ; 3.00 by 1.90 ; 2.85 by 1.92. 



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Genus URIA, Buissok. 



Una, Biiiss. Orn. VI. 1760, 70 (jmrt). 



Lomvia, Bisandt, Bull. Ac. St. Pcteisl). II. 1837, 345 (type, Gohjmbus troilc, LiKN.). 



Catanictcs, GiiAY, List Gen. iind Subgeii. 1841, 08 (siimo type). 



Char. Much larger than Cepphus. Bill uuich longer than the tarsus, much compressed, the 

 goiivs concave, ami nearly as h)ng as the culmen ; maxilla notched near the tip, its tomia nuich 

 inflecte<l ; nasal fossa) completely and densely feathered ; a distinct longitudinal furrow in the 

 feathering behind the eyes ; plumage white beneath at all seasons. 



|ij Key to the Species. 



1. U. troile. Depth of Inll through angle less than one third the length of the culr.ien ; 

 head and neck uniform smoky brown, sctvrcely, never conspicuously, darker on pileuni 

 and nape. 



a. Troile. Wing, 7.70-8.30 inches (average, 7.99) ; culmen, 1.70-1.90 (1.81) ; gonya, 



1.05-1.20 (1.1-1) ; depth of bill through angle, .OO-.OO (.f)2) ; tarsus, 1.4()-1.()0 (1.51) ; 



middle toe, 1.60-1.75 (1.70). Ifah. North Atlantic, south, in winter, to N«w England. 

 /3. Califomica. Wing, 7.85-8.80 inches (average, 8.30) ; culmen, l.CO-2.50 (1. 8C); gonys, 



1.15-1.40 (1.27) lepth of bill through base, .5.")-.G2 (.57); tai-sus, 1.35-1.00 (1.50) ; 



middle toe, 1.G5-1.85 (1.74). Hab. Pacific coast of North America, soi.th to California 



(breeding). 



2. U. lomvia. Depth of bill through angle more than one thinl the length of the culmen ; 

 pileum and nape black, like the back, in more or less conspicuous contrast with the deep 

 Buuff-brown of other portions of the head and neck. 



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