56 AUK. 



black, crossed with several furrows. The plumage of the head, 

 neck, and upper part of the body, the wings, and tail, black, the 

 rest white; also a large oval spot of the same, occupying most of 

 the space between the bill and eye; the second quills are tipped 

 with white, forming an oblong stripe on the wings ; which are so 

 small as to be useless for flight, the longest quill feather being little 

 more than four inches ; legs black. 



One of these, in the Museum of the late Mr. Tunstall, had only 

 two or three furrows on the bill, and the oval white patch between 

 the bill and eye spotted black and white : probably a young bird. 



This, as far as we can learn, is by no means a common species ; 

 it appears on the Isle of St. Kilda the beginning of May, and retires 

 in June, and probably breeds there ; it lays one large egg, close to 

 the sea mark, about six inches long, white, irregularly marked with 

 purplish lines, and blotched at the larger end with black, or ferru- 

 ginous spots; and it is said, that if the egg is taken away, the bird 

 will not lay a second; is supposed to hatch late, as in August the 

 young are only covered with grey down ; it never ventures far out to 

 sea, rarely beyond soundings. Sometimes frequents the Coast of 

 Norway, the Ferroe Isles, Iceland, and Greenland ; feeds much on 

 the Lump fish, Father lasher, and others of that size, but the young 

 birds will frequently eat Rose root,* and other plants; the old ones 

 are rarely seen on shore, though the young are often met with ; it is 

 a shy bird, and from the situation of the legs, being placed far 

 behind, walks badly, but dives well, and is taken in the manner used 

 for the Razor-bill and Puffin ; the skin between the jaws is blown 

 into a bladder, and in this state used, attached to the darts of the 

 Greenlanders : t it inhabits also Newfoundland, $ and it is said, that 

 the skin of the body is used by the Eskimaux Indians for garments. || 



This bird was found by Mr. Bullock, during his summer excursion 

 in 1813, in Papa Vestray, one of the Orkney Islands ; it was suffi- 

 ciently familiar with the boatmen about those parts, but would not 



* Rhodiola rosea. — Lin. t Faun. Groenl. X Arct. Zool. Br. Zool. || Arct. Zool. 



