VOL. vin] HABITS OF FULMAR PETREL. 231 



the bay to the great chff on which the Petrels nested, 

 and I made the most of that day by spending the whole 

 time amongst the birds. To see this cliff at its best one 

 should be on the sea. It was one of the steepest cliffs 

 I had ever seen. It towered high above our small boat 

 — a great frowning precipice, the lower part for three 

 hundred feet composed of vast black rocks, washed bare 

 and polished by the great waves of the winter storms. 

 The higher portion for about one thousand feet was 

 covered with grass and flowers. As we sailed slowly 

 towards this gigantic cliff we noticed that high up on 

 its grass-covered sides there were thousands of tiny 

 white dots, like little specks of snow, while floating 

 in a slow dreamy movement, thousands of the same 

 white dots were passing and repassing before the face 

 of the cliff. Hardly a sound was there — just the lap, 

 lap of the water as our boat pushed its way through, 

 or the cry of a startled sea-bird as it hurriedly left its 

 nest. This vast precipice that towered above us was 

 the home of the Fulmar Petrel that I had for so long 

 wanted to visit; but now that I had at last reached it, 

 I began to wonder how it was possible for an ordinary 

 human being to scale those great slopes with a camera. 

 But n\y guide, one of the best of the St. Kildan climbers, 

 assured me that it was quite easy ! However, I had 

 many doubts, for the landing was a risky job, as we 

 had to jump from a boat that was rising and falling 

 with a heavy swell, and endeavour to land on the 

 slippery rocks. This was safely accomplished, and 

 the cameras were passed up from the boat on a line 

 with a running noose, and we began the ascent. About 

 two hours later we were right amongst the birds, and 

 the view from above, although not so grand as that 

 from below, was nevertheless very wonderful. Thousands 

 of the graceful birds were flying about before me, and 

 going to or from their nests. The flight is distinct, 

 and unlike that of any other sea-bird I have seen. The 

 bird gives three, four, and sometimes five rapid flaps 



