In all, 103 birds of 3 species were banded and p^O returns were 
obtained from 7 species. One hundred blood samples were obtained from 
two species. kO (39 birds. banded were known breeding birds. 
397 (76 io) of the 521 birds returned were breeding bird returns, 
Birds ‘ Howland 
Wedge-tailed Shearwater Estimated population---— 5“10 
During our survey Hackman found a colony of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters 
near the north-northeast end of the island. It was located about two- 
thirds of the distance between a rock cairn on the northeast beach crest 
and a large mound of dirt to north and west of there. The colony itself 
was in an area approximately 125 feet in an east-west direction and 75 
feet in a north-south line. It contained probably no less than 25 
burrows, many of which were old and inactive. 
Hackman dug out three burrows when he first visited the area. One, 
ending in a 3 X 3 "B°°^ chamber and with a burrow length of about four feet, 
was full of hermit crabs. Another, about l-l /2 feet long and partially 
open from the top, contained nothing. The third burrow had a 2 - 1 / 2 -foot 
tunnel leading to a small chamber that contained two dark-phase Wedge¬ 
tailed Shearwaters. During this visit to the colony Hackman heard sever¬ 
al birds digging in their burrows. 
When Clapp and Hackman revisited the colony about an hour later, 
another dark-phase shearwater was found in another burrow. Ho other 
burrows were dug up since the colony was quite small and we had no wish 
seriously to disturb the incipient breeding population. 
Several other observations of Wedge-tailed Shearwaters, all dark- 
phase birds, were made during our survey. Several were seen offshore 
as we approached the island on the 15 th; Crossin observed one flying in 
over the center of the island late in the afternoon of the l 6 th. When 
we returned to the ship the crew showed us a bird that had flown into 
the ship the previous.night and which had been kept until our return. 
. Although we found no eggs or young, the number of burrows seen in¬ 
dicates that this species breeds on Howland; we- do not know whether any 
of the nesting attempts were successful. Since this colony is located 
about as far from camp as one can get on the island, in an area which 
would probably be less thoroughly covered than others on most surveys, 
and since burrows and birds were noted in this area in May 1965, it seems 
quite likely that this species may have been present during much of the 
intervening period and possibly before. 
