266 
SWIMMERS. 
flock of birds to the soundings of the .Azores, and until we 
came in sight of the Isle of Flores. 
According to Buffon, the Petrel acquires its name from the 
Apostle Peter, who, as well as his Master, is said to have walked 
upon the water. .\t times we hear from these otherwise silent 
birds by day, a low weet, weet, and in their craving anxiety ap- 
parently to obtain something from us, they utter a low, twitter- 
ing 'pe-iip, or chirp. In the night, when disturbed by the passage 
of the vessel, they rise in a low, vague, and hurried flight from 
the water, and utter a singular guttural chattering like kuk kuk 
k'k, k'k, or something similar, ending usually in a sort of low 
twitter like that of a Swallow. 
I’hese Petrels are said to breed in great numbers on the 
rocky shores of the Bahama and the Bermuda Islands and 
along some parts of the coast of East Florida and Cuba. Mr. 
Audubon informs me that they also breed in large flocks on 
the mud and sand islands off Cape Sable in Nova Scotia, bur- 
rowing downwards from the surface to the depth of a foot or 
more. They also commonly employ the holes and cavities of 
rocks near the sea for this purpose. The eggs, according to 
Mr. Audubon, are three, white and translucent. After the 
period of incubation they return to feed their young, only dur- 
ing the night, with the oily food which they raise from their 
stomachs. .At these times they are heard through most part 
of the night making a continued cluttering sound, like frogs. 
In June and July, or about the time that they breed, they are 
still seen out at sea for scores of leagues from the land, the 
swiftness of their flight allowing them daily to make these vast 
excursions in quest of their ordinary prey ; and hence, besides 
their suspicious appearance in braving storms, as if aided by 
the dark Ruler of the .Air, they breed, according to the vulgar 
opinion of sailors, like no other honest bird ; for taking no 
time for the purpose on land, they merely hatch their egg 
under their wings as they sit on the water. 
The food of this species, according to Wilson, appears to 
consist of the gelatinous spora of the gulf- weed (Fucus na- 
tans), as well as small fish, barnacles, and probably many 
