122 
THE CONDOR 
VOL. V 
ing in clouds from their resting places and swinging around us and out to sea, 
passing others which were en route for the rocks. Tufted puffins, like Gargan- 
tuan black swifts, sped like animated bullets to and fro; California murres, less 
partial to flight, terminated their journeys in the water and dotted the waves in 
every direction; cormorants winged their heavy way from the detached rocks near 
the main island, the different species readily distinguishable by the characteristic 
breeding plumages. The odor of sea-fowl and guano filled the air, and from the 
rookeries came the ceaseless chatter and croaking of thousands of birds. 
Photography being the main object in vie w, after settling our traps we started 
out to look the rookeries over with a view of picking the best spots for next day’s 
work. We soon placed the different colonies ofranrres. gulls and cormorants, and 
after securing a few photos, returned to a late supper and bed. 
June 3rd found us early at work, and during the forenoon interesting photo- 
TUFTED PUFFIN AT MOUTH OF BURROW 
graphs were secured, mainly of murres, pigeon guillemots, and Cassin auklets. 
The guillemots were found distributed fairly well over the island, thicker perhaps 
at the eastern end, where broken rock and detached granite boulders form many 
ideal nooks and crannies for nesting places. The eggs are two in number and are 
placed in the crevices of the rocks without any attempt at making a nest. These 
are striking birds in their sooty black dress, white wing-patches and vivid scarlet 
bills, eyes and feet. When disturbed by the approach of an intruder they open 
wide^their bills and emit a peculiarly weak but penetrating “whistle.” Several 
long-distance photos were secured but we could not get closer to them than twenty 
feet, and they were too wary to catch on the nest. With these birds, nesting was 
just fairly under way, nearly all the burrows holding a full complement of eggs. 
The Cassin auklets nest all over the island, wherever a suitable burrow is 
available. They are more of a burrowing bird than the guillemots, often excavat- 
