SOOTY SHEARWATER. 



PUFFINUS GRISEUS (Gmel). 



Procellaria grisea, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. i. p. 564 (1788) . 

 Puffinus cinereus, Macg. v. p. 438. 



Puffinus griseus, Yarr. ed. 4, iv. p. 17 ; Dresser, viii. p. 523. 



The Sooty Shearwater is a bird of immense oceanic 

 range, being reported as common off the coasts of 

 Labrador and Greenland, and found on those of Chili, 

 California, S. Africa, Australia, and N. Zealand (Yarrell 

 ut supra). It is an irregular, but not a very uncommon, 

 visitor to our coasts. 



The drawings for the Plate were taken from two birds 

 obtained on the coast of Yorkshire, and kindly lent to 

 me by Mr. J. Backhouse, jun., of York. 



I have several times observed large Shearwaters in 

 the Bay of Biscay and off the Spanish coast that showed 

 no trace of white in their plumage, and must, I think, 

 have belonged to this species. 



