l ^18 



PROCELLARIA. PETREL. 



Generic Character. 



Rostrum capite brevior, apice 

 valde compressum, inte- 

 grum ; mandibular apice 

 aduncae. 



Nares tubulo supra basin 



rostri decumbente, trun- 

 cato-geminata. 



Pedes eraciles; tarsi elon- 



o 



gati ; unguis posticus loco 

 pollice. 



PROCELLARIA Auctorurn. 



Beak shorter than the head, 

 its tip greatly compressed, 

 entire ; both mandibles 

 hooked. 



Nostrils placed in a trun- 

 cated and geminated tube 

 above the base of the beak. 



Legs slender ; tarsi elon- 

 gated ; no hinder toe, but 

 a simple claw instead. 



JL HE Petrels are the smallest birds of this group ; 

 they fly about in the twilight, and delight in stormy 

 and cloudy weather; their flight is astonishingly 

 rapid, and their movement so abrupt, that it is dif- 

 ficult to watch them for a long period : during fine 

 weather they seldom appear abroad, but take refuge 

 in the deserted hole of a rabbit, or in the cleft of a 

 rock, making their appearance towards evening, in 

 search of food, which consists of various insects and 

 vermes, and also pieces of blubber and fat, that float 

 about on the surface of the water. 



