258 
STOKM PETREL 
in June, but did not discover any breeding-station.' No 
station has since been found ; yet considering the nocturnal 
habits of the bird and the remote and hidden nature of its 
haunts, it can hardly yet be considered impossible that it 
breeds, or has bred, on our shores. 
Manx records are, however, rare. On 27th September 
1891 I saw two Petrels in Peel Bay. 'They were flying 
backwards and forwards near the shore wall, dipping to 
the surface of the water in their characteristic way, and 
coming so close that I could distinctly see the thin light- 
coloured line across their wings. As the town houses 
extend all along the beach, the birds attracted a number 
of boys, who threw stones at them and quickly drove them 
away' (Zool., 1892, p. 28). About the same time a speci- 
men procured in the south came into the hands of Mr. 
Adams. In reporting these occurrences to the Zoologist I 
hesitated to name the species to which these belonged, but 
have now no doubt that they were Storm Petrels. It w T as 
at this time, after south-west gales, that Petrels of this and 
especially of the Fork-tailed species appeared in such 
numbers in Ireland. 
Mr. Kermode mentions a specimen picked up dead at 
Port Erin, 3rd January 1892. 
Train says that a number were cast ashore after a great 
storm in January 1839. 
At the fishing-grounds Petrels are not unfamiliar to our 
fishermen. 
This species breeds on two small islands off the north 
coast of Antrim, and at various sites in Donegal ; it has 
occurred, often storm-driven, all round the coasts of our 
sea. It nests in a good many localities among the Scottish 
isles. 
