28 CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



It is always safe to wear a heavy glove when taking a 

 bird from its nest. They will strike a few times at one's 

 hand, and then retreat, if there is room; but if not, they 

 become angered and bite viciously. One caught Mr. Em- 

 erson by a finger and bit it to the bone, holding on with 

 bull-dog tenacity until killed. 



When alighting, they hold the body and head low and 

 then straighten up, adjust the wings and draw the head 

 back proudly. On the rocks, or flying about, they are si- 

 lent, but when two are in the same burrow they keep up 

 what sounds like an angry quarreling and scolding. The 

 sentinels, if alarmed, circle about; but when a person re- 

 mains perfectly quiet they will soon return and light with- 

 in a few yards. Their bright and oddly-shaped bill, white 

 eyes and yellow nuptial tufts, which flutter in the wind, 

 make them birds of peculiar interest to observe in life. 



The food of the puffins was found by dissection to con- 

 sist mainly of small fish, together with some algse. 



Young, with feathers plainly appearing through the 

 down, were taken July 26, 1886. 



I have carefully measured fifty puffin's eggs, which aver- 

 age 70.2 mm. x 48.4 mm. The individual proportions of 

 eight eggs, showing the greatest and smallest extremes of 

 both diameters, are 81 x 50; 77 x 48; 74 x 50; 71.5 x 51; 71 

 X 46; 65.5 x 45; 64 x 50; 63.5 x 50 millimeters. 



2. Ptychoramphus aleuticus. 



Cassin's Auklet. — a strictly nocturnal species, flying 

 during foggy, stormy or moonlight nights, but never 

 at dusk. They arrive early in the year, coming in 

 great numbers in the night of January 14, 1887. The 

 auks do not fly until it is quite dark, and are supposed 

 not to fly very high; otherwise more, it would seem, would 

 strike the lighthouse. One, attracted by a lantern carried 

 by Mr. Emerson, flew with characteristic swiftness directly 

 at it, but missed and struck against the side of a house, 



