AND NEIGHBOURHOOD. 251 



journals, refers to a specimen picked up alive in a 

 field of mangold wurzel on August 24, 1882, near 

 Cranford, and sent off to me at once by Mr. S. Soames, 

 who was living at Cranford at the time ; here, again, 

 I find in my notes — 'Aug, 23rd, 1882, " Heavy rain and 

 furious westerly gale." This bird reached me alive, 

 but in a wretchedly emaciated condition ; it refused 

 all food, and died a few days after I received it. 

 This species is to be seen at all seasons of the year 

 off our coasts, the western coasts of France, Spain, 

 and Portugal, and throughout the Mediterranean 

 from Gibraltar to Cyprus. The only British breeding 

 locality of the Manx Shearwater that I ever searched 

 is the isle of Annet, one of the Scilly group, where 

 these birds lay, or used to lay, their eggs in the 

 numerous rabbit-burrows on the low sandy and fern- 

 clad portion of the island ; a very graphic account 

 of this spot and its feathered inhabitants was com- 

 municated to Yarrell by the late Mr. D, W. Mitchell, 

 and is quoted at length by that author, whose 

 experiences coincide to the letter with my own, except 

 that I never, in Scilly, had the good fortune to 

 encounter such a ' gathering ' of Shearwaters as that 

 mentioned by Mr. Mitchell in ' Smith's Sound,' 

 The Manx Shearwater lays one egg only, of large 

 size, and of a pure white. During our stay in Scilly 

 we seldom saw more than one or two Shearwaters 

 on wing before sunset, but away from their breeding 

 localities I have frequently seen them at all times of 

 day, although I believe that many only leave their 

 hiding-places after dark ; I have often noticed them 

 gliding past our vessel by moonlight. No birds ever 

 received a more thoroughly appropriate English name 

 than the Shearwaters, who generally skim rapidly 



