351 
THE STORMY PETREL. 
least, of one of us being saved ; draw your knife, and cut away below !" was tbe cool and intrepid 
order of the parent; "Exert yourself; you may yet escape, and live to comfort your motber !" 
There was no time for discussion or farther hesitation. The son looked up once more, but the 
edge of rock was cutting its way, and the rojDC had nearly severed. The knife was drawn, the 
rope was divided, and his father and brother were launched into eternity ! 
The Fulmar Petrel, P, glacialis^ is nineteen inches long, pearl-grav above and white be- 
neath. It is seen in all parts of the North Atlantic, and is a constant attendant on the whale 
fisheries ; nothing can exceed the voracity with which these creatures devour the portion of 
fat which falls to their share on the cutting up of a whale. 
The Giant Fulmar, P, gigantea, is the largest known species, being somewhat larger than a 
goose, and is called the Bone-Breaker. Its plumage is blackish-gray ; it feeds on insects, mol- 
lusca, fish, and the flesh of dead cetacea that it meets with floating on the sea. Found from 
Cape Horn to the Cape of Good Hope. 
The Cape Petrel or Fulmar, P. Capensis^ is of the size of a small duck ; its general plumage 
above is black, with masses of white ; beneath it is white. This bird is called Damier and 
Pintado by the French. It inhabits the soathern seas. 
Other species are the Slender-billed Fulmar, P. tenuirostris, and the Tropical Fulmar, 
P. meridionalis, the first found on the Pacific coast, and the latter on the Atlantic coast of 
North America. The Pacific Fulmar, P. Pacifica, is found on the Pacific coasts of North 
America. 
Genus THAL ASSIDROMA : Thalassidroma. — This includes the True Petrels, which are 
much smaller than the Fulmars, some of a light swallow-like form and appearance. The Stormy- 
Petrel, T. pelagica, is the smallest of Aveb-footed birds. The length is about six inches ; the 
plumage almost entirely black. It inhabits nearly the whole Atlantic, and is always seen by 
vessels crossing this ocean, sometimes following in their wake for days together, picking up 
pieces of meat and fat that are thrown overboard. Often half a dozen birds will descend on a 
single fragment and struggle for the possession of it. In a storm, they are seen whirling amid 
