^"sc^^l Anthony, Petrels of Southern Cdli/orina. lAI 



located one of the lairds in a burrow under an immense rock, as I 

 passed on my way to camp. It several times uttered a clickinj^ 

 note which I felt sure was that of a Petrel. During the evening 

 I watched the hillside and discovered several burrows by follow- 

 ing the direction of the call notes and watching the birds as they 

 entered the holes, which were all under very large bowlders or in 

 cracks in the ledges where it was impossible to secure eggs had 

 there been any. From the large size of the Petrels I was reason- 

 ably sure that they were Oceanodrovia melania^ and marking sev- 

 eral of the most likely burrows I returned the following day with 

 a shovel and undermined the bowlders, letting them roll down the 

 hill, hoping to uncover the nests, but all were so far back in the 

 rocks that I secured neither eggs nor birds, nor could I determine 

 whether they were nesting. From what I afterward learned I now 

 know that they were mating and I was much too early for eggs. 



On the 24th of April I visited the colony of Socorro Petrels 

 discovered in 1895 and found a number of nearly finished bur- 

 rows and one bird. I visited the same colony on June 12 and in 

 each burrow found two Petrels, male and female, but no eggs. 

 It was not until July 10 that I had an opportunity to again visit 

 the island when I found both eggs and birds. Most of the eggs 

 were more or less incubated, and two young ones were found 

 not over two or three days old. They were mere little bunches 

 of sooty down of uniform color, winking and blinking when 

 brought to the light like little owls. In the same colony I found 

 two Black Petrels with fresh eggs, confirming my identification of 

 the birds seen on April 12. The eggs of Oceaiiodroma socorroensis 

 were usually freckled with reddish spots in a more or less com- 

 plete ring about the larger end, but those of O. vielania were 

 unmarked, as have been all that I have subsequently handled. 



From the data I have accumulated I find that both of the 

 preceding species inhabit the burrows for nearly three months 

 before the egg is laid, usually both birds being found in the 

 burrow until incubation begins. After the chick is a day or two ^ 

 old the parent is seldom if ever found in the burrow in the da}' 

 time. On Guadaloupe Island a colony of O. macrodacfyla were 

 found breeding among the pines and oaks at about 2500 feet 

 above the sea. Well incubated eggs were taken March 24. and 



