69 
Has been taken off the south end of Vancouver island, but is appar- 
ently only a straggler so far north. Neither of these white-underbodied 
Shearwaters is likely to be seen. 
95. Sooty Shearwater. Puffinus griseus. L, 16-18. All dark brownish grey. 
Lining of wings nearly white. 
Distinction s. Rather browner and less greyish, underwing coverts whiter, and a 
larger bird than the Slender-billed Shearwater, the only Shearwater it is likely to be con- 
fused with (bill, Figure 106). 
Field Marks. A dark Shearwater with considerable white along the forward edge of 
underwing. Larger than the Slender-billed. 
Distribution. Oceans of southern hemisphere. Breeds among the islands of Tierra 
del Fuego. In summer, north to Canadian waters on both coasts, in the west to the base 
of the Alaska Panhandle. 
This is the commonest of the Shearwaters to be seen on our British 
Columbia coast. 
96. Slender-billed Shearwater. Puffinus tenuirosiris . L, 14. May be regarded 
as a smaller form of the Sooty Shearwater. 
Distinctions. Smaller and rather greyer than the Sooty Shearwater and with grey 
rather than white underwing covertB. The name Slender-billed is rather misleading. 
The bill is if anything shorter and relatively stouter than the preceding species (Figure 
106). 
Field Marks. A dark Shearwater, light grey along the forward edge of the under- 
wing. Smaller than the Sooty Shearwater. 
Distribution. Southern hemisphere north in summer to Bering sea. 
Our records for this species cover southern Vancouver island and the 
north end of Queen Charlotte islands. May be commoner than our 
records indicate as on sight it may be confused with the Sooty. 
Petrels 
General Description. In our waters represented by small birds about 8 inches long. 
Evenly sooty brown with white rump; or ash-grey in colour. 
Distinctions. Small size. Nostril tubes closely fused so that the 
division between is reduced to a narrow septum (Figure 107). Tail 
slightly to decidedly forked. 
Field Marks. Small, evenly-coloured birds flitting close to the 
surface of the water at sea, pattering up and down the waves as if 
walking on them. 
Nesting. In burrows in the ground or under rocks. 
The birds are well known to sailors and travellers 
under the name of “Mother Carey’s Chickens” and their . Figure 
appearance is said to presage a storm. In spite of their B rei -° natural sizef" 
diminutive size they are met with far out at sea and are 
seldom seen by the longshoreman except in the vicinity of their breeding 
grounds. Even where they nest in numbers, they may remain unnoticed 
by the ordinary observer, owing to their nocturnal habits when breeding. 
Economic Status. The Petrels though feeding on fish are too small and 
live too far from civilization to be of measurable economic importance. 
105. Fork-tailed Petrel. Oceanodroma furcata. L, 8-9. An ashy grey Petrel, 
lighter below and on throat. Tail decidedly forked, outer feathers nearly an inch longer 
than the centre ones. 
Distinctions. Ashy grey coloration instead of smoky brown. 
Field Marks. The ashy colour and lack of white rump patch. 
Distribution. North Pacific and adjacent Arctic oceans. Breeds along the Pacific 
coast south to Oregon. Our only substantiated breeding records are from Queen 
Charlotte islands, but it is recorded as nesting both to the north and the south of our shores. 
