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 SKIMMERS. Family RYNCHOPIDÆ Skimmers are Tern-like birds having a very strangely developed bill. The lower mandible is much longer than the upper and very thin, the upper edge being as sharp as the lower. The lower mandible is rounded at the end while the upper is more pointed. Young Skimmers are said to have both mandibles of the same length, the abnormal development not appearing until after flight. Skimmers are very graceful birds, and, as implied by their name, they skim over the surface of the water, rising and falling with the waves, and are said to pick up their food by dropping the lower mandible below the surface, its thin edge cutting the water like a knife. There are four species of Skimmers, only one of which is found in North America. 80. Black Skimmer. Rynchops nigra. Buffy yellow. Range.--The South Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, breeding from New Jersey southward. The Black Skimmer is about eighteen inches in length, and besides the remarkable bill is a bird of striking plumage; the forehead, ends of the secondaries, tail feathers and under parts are white; the rest of the plumage is black and the basal half of the bill is crimson. Skimmers nest in large communities, the same as do the Terns, laying their eggs in hollows in the sand. They are partially nocturnal in their habits and their hoarse barking cries may be heard after the shadows of night have enveloped the earth. Fishermen call them by the names of "Cut-water" and "Sea Dog." The nesting season commences in May and continues through June and July. They lay from three to five eggs, having a creamy or yellowish buff ground, blotched with black, chestnut and lilac. Size 1.75 × 1.30. Data.--Cobb's Is., Va., June 8, 1894. Three eggs laid in a hollow on the beach. No nest.
Page 59 TUBE-NOSED SWIMMERS. Order III. TUBINARES. ALBATROSSES. Family DIOMEDEIDAE Black-footed Albatross.
Short-tailed Albatross. Albatrosses are the largest of the sea birds and have an enormous expanse of wing, the Wandering Albatross, the largest of the family, sometimes attaining an expanse of fourteen feet. Their nostrils consist of two slightly projecting tubes, one on each side near the base of the bill. They are unsurpassed in powers of flight, but are only fair swimmers and rarely, if ever, dive, getting their food, which consists of dead animal matter, from the surface of the water. 81. Black-footed Albatross. Diomedea nigripes. Range.--North Pacific from California northward. This Albatross is thirty-two inches in length; it is of a uniform sooty brown color shading into whitish at the base of the bill, which is rounded. Like the other members of the family, this species is noted for its extended flights, following vessels day after day without any apparent period of rest, for the purpose of feeding on the refuse that is thrown overboard. They breed during our winter on some of the small isolated islands in the extreme southern portions of the globe. They lay a single white egg on the bare ground. 82. Short-tailed Albatross. Diomedea albatrus. Range.--North Pacific Ocean in summer, from Lower California to Alaska. With the exception of the Wandering Albatross, which is now regarded as doubtful as occurring off our coasts, the Short-tailed Albatross is one of the largest of the group, measuring thirty-six inches in length, and has an extent of seven feet or more. With the exception of the black primaries, shoulders and tail, the entire plumage is white, tinged with straw color on the back of the head. They breed on the guano islands in the North Pacific off the coasts of Alaska and Japan. They lay a single white egg on the bare ground or rocks. As with the other members of the family, the eggs are extremely variable in size, but average about 4.25 × 2.50.




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 82.1. Laysan Albatross. Diomedea immutabilis. Laysan Albatross.
Yellow-nosed Albatross.
Sooty Albatross. Range.--Laysan Island of the Hawaiian Group, appearing casually off the coast of California. This species breeds in large numbers on the island from which it takes its name. The birds are white with the exception of the back, wings and tail, which are black. The birds, having been little molested in their remote island, are exceedingly tame, and it is possible to go among the sitting birds without disturbing them. Mr. Walter K. Fisher has contributed an admirable report on this species in the 1913 Bulletin of the Fish Commission, the report being illustrated with numerous illustrations of the birds from photos by the author. Their single white eggs are laid on the bare ground. 83. Yellow-nosed Albatross. Thalassogeron culminatus. This is a species which inhabits the South Pacific and Indian Oceans, and is said to rarely occur on the California coast. They breed during our winter on some of the small islands and during our summer are ocean wanderers. An egg in the collection of Col. John E. Thayer was taken on Gough Island, South Atlantic Ocean; Sept. 1st, 1888. The nest was a mound of mud and grass about two feet in height. The single white egg measured 3.75 × 2.25. It was collected by George Comer. 84. Sooty Albatross. Phoebetria-palpebrata. Range.--Southern seas, north in our summer along the Pacific coast of the United States. This species is entirely sooty brown except the white eyelids. It is similar to the Black-footed Albatross from which species it can be distinguished in all plumages by the narrow base of the bill, while the bill of the former species is broad and rounded. They breed commonly on isolated islands in many quarters of the southern hemisphere. Sometimes this species constructs a mound of mud on which to deposit its single white egg, and also often lays it on the bare ground or rock. A specimen in Mr. Thayer's collection, taken by Geo. Comer on So. Georgia Is. in the South Atlantic ocean, was laid in a hollow among loose stones on the ledge of an overhanging cliff. Size 4.10 × 2.75.
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EGG OF SOOTY ALBATROSS--White.
FULMARS, SHEARWATERS and PETRELS Family PROCELLARIDAE Fulmars, Shearwaters and Petrels are Gull-like birds with two nostril tubes located side by side, in a single tube, on the top of the bill at its base. The Fulmars are mostly northern birds while the majority of the Shearwaters nest in the extreme south during our winter, and appear off our coasts during the summer. Their food consists of fish or offal which they get from the surface of the water; large flocks of them hover about fishermen, watching their chance to get any food which falls, or is thrown, overboard.



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 Fulmar. 85. Giant Fulmar. Macronectes gigantea. Range.--This Petrel is a native of the southern seas and is only casually met with off the Pacific coast. It is the largest of the family, being about three feet in length, and is normally a uniform sooty color, although it has light phases of plumage. They nest in December on many of the islands south of Africa and South America, laying their single white egg on the bare rocks. 86. Fulmar. Fulmarus glacialis glacialis. Range.--North Atlantic coasts from New England northward, breeding from Hudson Bay and southern Greenland northward. This bird which is 19 inches in length, in the light phase has a plumage very similar to that of the larger Gulls. They nest by thousands on rocky islands of the north, often in company with Murres and Gulls. Owing to the filthy habits of the Fulmars, these breeding grounds always have a nauseating odor, which is also imparted to, and retained by the egg shell. Their single white eggs are laid on the bare rocks, in crevices of the cliffs, often hundreds of feet above the water. Size 2.90 × 2.00. Data.--St. Kilda, off Scotland. June 5, 1897. Single egg laid on rock on side of sea cliff. Collector, Angus Gillies.
Page 63 Pacific Fulmar.
Slender-billed Fulmar. 86b. Pacific Fulmar. Fulmarus glacialis glupischa. This sub-species of the preceding, has a darker mantle than the common Fulmar; it is found on the northern Pacific coasts where it breeds on the high rocky cliffs, the same as its eastern relative. They nest in large colonies, every crevice in the rocks having its tenant. Their flight is graceful like that of the Gulls, which they closely resemble. They lay but a single white egg, the average dimensions of which are slightly smaller than those of the common Fulmar. Data.--Copper Is., Alaska. May 14, 1889. Egg laid in a crevice among the cliffs. 86.1. Rodger's Fulmar. Fulmarus rodgers. Range.--North Pacific, breeding in large numbers on some of the islands in Bering Sea; south to California in winter. Very similar to the two preceding species except that the back is mixed with whitish, it is not believed to have a dark phase. Their breeding habits and eggs do not differ from the common Fulmar. The eggs are laid on the rocky cliffs during June. 87. Slender-billed Fulmar. Priocella glacialoides. Range.--Southern seas, appearing on the Pacific coast of the United States in the summer. This species has a paler mantle than the others of the family, and the primaries are black. The make-up and plumage of the whole bird is more like that of the Gulls than any of the others. They probably breed in the far south during our winter, although we have no definite data relative to their nesting habits.



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 Cory Shearwater.
Greater Shearwater. 88. Cory's Shearwater. Puffinus borealis. This species probably breeds in the far south. It has been found only off the coast of Massachusetts and Long Island. This is the largest of our Shearwaters, and can be distinguished from the next species by its wholly white underparts, its light mantle and yellowish bill. We have no data relative to its nesting habits. 89. Greater Shearwater. Puffinus gravis. Range.--The whole of the Atlantic Ocean. Thousands of them spend the latter part of the summer off the New England coast, where they are known to the fishermen as Haglets. Their upper parts are brownish gray, darker on the wings; bill and feet dark; underparts white, with the middle of the belly and the under tail covers dusky. Length about 20 inches. Little is known concerning their nesting quarters, although they are said to breed in Greenland. From the fact of their early appearance off the New England coast it is probable that the greater part of them nest in the far south. 90. Manx Shearwater. Puffinus puffinus. This species inhabits the North Atlantic ocean chiefly on the European side, being abundant in the Mediterranean and in the British Isles. Audubon's Shearwater. Thesebirds deposit their single pure white eggs in crevices among the cliffs, on the ground or in burrows dug by themselves. Size of egg 2.35 × 1.60. Data.--Isle of Hay, North Scotland. June 1, 1893. Single egg laid at the end of a three foot burrow. Egg of Audubon's Shearwater--White.
Page 65 91. Pink-footed Shearwater. Puffinus creatopus. Pink-footed Shearwater.
Black-vented Shearwater.
Townsend's Shearwater. Range.--Pacific Ocean, north on American side to California in summer. This species, whose breeding habits are little known, is similar in size and color to the Greater Shearwater, differing chiefly in the yellowish bill and pinkish colored feet. 92. Audubon's Shearwater. Puffinus lherminieri. Range.--Middle Atlantic, ranging north in late summer to Long Island. This bird, having a length of but twelve inches, is the smallest of the Shearwaters found along our coasts. Large colonies of them breed on some of the small islands and keys of the West Indies and Bahamas, and not so commonly in the Bermudas. Their eggs, which are pure white, are deposited at the end of burrows dug by the birds. Size of egg 2.00 × 1.35. Their nesting season commences about the latter part of March and continues through April and May. After the young are able to fly, like other members of the family, the birds become ocean wanderers and stray north to southern New England. Data.--Bahamas, April 13, 1891. Single egg laid at the end of a burrow about two feet in length. Collector, D. P. Ingraham. 92.1. Allied Shearwater. Puffinus assimilis. This is an Australian and New Zealand species that has accidentally strayed to the shores of Nova Scotia. 93. Black-vented Shearwater. Puffinus opisthomelas. Range.--Middle Pacific coast of the Americas, north in late summer along the coast of California. This species breeds commonly on the islands off the coast of Lower California, especially on the Gulf side. Their single egg is white, size 2.00 × 1.30, and is located at the end of a burrow. Data.--Natividad Is., Lower California, April 10, 1897. Single egg laid on the sand at the end of a burrow six feet in length. Collector, A. W. Anthony. 93.1. Townsend's Shearwater. Puffinus auricularis. This bird ranges from Cape St. Lucas, south along the Pacific coast of Mexico, breeding on the Revillagigedo Islands off the Mexican coast.




Page 66 Sooty Shearwater. 94. Sooty Shearwater. Puffins fuliginosus. Range.--A common species off the Atlantic coast in summer; breeds along our northern coasts, and it is also supposed that many of them nest in southern seas and reach our coasts early in the summer. These Shearwaters are entirely sooty gray, being somewhat lighter below. They are called "black haglets" by the fishermen, whose vessels they follow in the hope of procuring bits of refuse. They commonly nest in burrows in the ground, but are also said to build in fissures among the ledges. Their single white egg measures 2.55 × 1.75. Data.--Island in Ungava Bay, northern Labrador, June 14, 1896. Egg laid in a fissure of a sea cliff. Collector, A. N. McFord.



Dark-bodied Shearwater.
Slender-billed Shearwater. 95. Dark-bodied Shearwater. Puffinus griseus. This is a southern species which, after having nested on islands in the far south during our winter, comes north and appears off the Pacific coast of the United States during the summer. It is a similar bird to the Sooty Shearwater, but is considerably darker and the under coverts are whitish. Their nesting habits are the same as those of other members of the family. Size of egg, 2.40 × 1.65. Data.--Stewart's Island, New Zealand, February 15, 1896. Single egg at the end of a long burrow. 96. Slender-billed Shearwater. Puffinus tenuirostris. Range.--Northern Pacific Ocean in the summer, extending from Japan and Alaska southward. Supposed to breed in the southern hemisphere, as well as probably on some of the Aleutians in Alaska. 96.1. Wedge-tailed Shearwater. Puffinus cuneatus. Range.--North Pacific, breeding on the Revillagigedo Islands off the coast of Mexico, and probably on some of the small islands in the Gulf of California. 97. Black-tailed Shearwater. Priofinus cinerus. This is a Shearwater which inhabits the southern hemisphere, but which has accidentally wandered to the Pacific coast of the United States. It is dark above and whitish below, with black under tail coverts. It breeds in the far south.
Page 67 Black-capped Petrel.
Scaled Petrel.
Fisher's Petrel. 98. Black-capped Petrel. Æstrelata hasitata. This is not a common species; it is an inhabitant of tropical seas and has only been casually found on our coasts or inland. It is a handsome species with white forehead, underparts and nape with a small isolated black cap on the crown; the rest of the upper parts are blackish. It is a native of the West Indies. 99. Scaled Petrel. Æstrelata scalaris. This is another rare species which is an inhabitant of southern seas. A single specimen taken in New York State gives it a claim as a doubtful North American species. It is a handsome bird, the feathers of the grayish upperparts being edged with white, thus giving it the appearance of being barred. Its eggs have only been known to science within the past few years. Data.--Preservation Inlet, New Zealand, June 7, 1900. Single white egg. Size 2.40 × 1.75. Collector, P. Seymour. Parent bird taken with the egg. 100. Fisher's Petrel. Æstralata fisheri. This is a handsome bird known only from the type specimen taken off Kadiak Is., Alaska, by Mr. Fisher. 101. Bulwer's Petrel. Bulweria bulweri. An eastern Atlantic species which is only an accidental visitant to our shores. They breed on the Madeira Islands where the eggs are laid in crevices among the rocks or in burrows in the ground. Size 1.75 × 1.55, white. 102. Pintado Petrel. Daption capensis. This is the Cape Pigeon of the southern hemisphere. It has only accidentally occurred on our coast.