base, livid flesh-colour. Edges of eyelids livid blue; iris hazel.
Feet purplish-grey; claws brownish-black. The general colour of the
plumage is dull white, mottled with greyish-brown beneath, on the
back with large brownish-black spots, the dark markings being central.
Anterior to the eye is a crescent of greyish-black. The outer primary
quills are black, the two first without white at the ends, the rest
margined round the ends with that colour. The abdominal and tibial
feathers are white; the lower and upper tail-coverts white, with
brown spots.
Length to end of tail 18-3/8, to end of wings 20-1/2, extent of wings
44-1/2; tarsus 2, middle toe 1-3/12, its claws 2/12. Weight 1 lb. 3
ounces.
On a rocky island on the coast of Labrador, where this bird was
breeding in great numbers, a comparatively small number of individuals
only had the bill marked with the black ring, the others, although
precisely similar in other respects, wanted that mark. This bird
although in many respects precisely similar to that which is usually
named _Larus canus_ in Europe, differs greatly in the size of the
bill, which even in young birds is much deeper than in the oldest
individuals of that species.
THE PUFFIN.
_MORMON ARCTICUS_, ILLIGER.
PLATE CCXIII. MALE AND FEMALE.
The Sea Parrot, as this bird is usually called on the eastern coasts
of the United States, as well as by the fishermen of Newfoundland
and Labrador, sometimes proceeds as far south as the entrance of the
River Savannah in Georgia, where I saw a good number in the winter
of 1831-32. It is by no means, however, common with this species to
extend its southward migrations so far, and I suspect it does so only
in very severe weather. It is never plentiful off Long Island, but
becomes more abundant the farther you proceed eastward, until you
reach the entrance to the Bay of Fundy, where it is quite common,
and on the Islands of which many breed, although not one perhaps now
for a hundred that bred there twenty years ago. Those which proceed
farther north leave the United States about the middle of April,
and move along the coast, none ever crossing over the land to any
extent. On my voyage to Labrador I observed Puffins every day; but
although we reached that country in the early part of June, none had
then begun to breed. As we approached the shores of that inhospitable
land, we every now and then saw them around the vessel, now floating
on the swelling wave, now disappearing under the bow, diving with
the swiftness of thought, and sometimes rising on wing and flying
swiftly, but low, over the sea. The nearer we approached the coast
the more abundant did we find the Puffins, and sometimes they were
so numerous as actually to cover the water to the extent of half
an acre or more. At first we paid little attention to them, but as
soon as I became aware that they had begun to breed, I commenced an
investigation, of which I now proceed to lay before you the result.
The first breeding place which I and my party visited was a small
island, a few acres in extent, and pleasant to the eye, on account of
the thick growth of green grass with which it was covered. The shores
were exceedingly rugged, the sea ran high, and it required all the good
management of our captain to effect a safe landing, which, however,
was at length accomplished at a propitious moment, when, borne on
the summit of a great wave, we reached the first rocks, leaped out
in an instant, and held our boat, while the angry waters rolled back
and left it on the land. After securing the boat, we reached with
a few steps the green sward, and directly before us found abundance
of Puffins. Some already alarmed flew past us with the speed of an
arrow, others stood erect at the entrance of their burrows, while some
more timid withdrew within their holes as we advanced towards them.
In the course of half an hour we obtained a good number. The poor
things seemed not at all aware of the effect of guns, for they would
fly straight towards us as often as in any other direction; but after
a while they became more knowing, and avoided us with more care. We
procured some eggs, and as no young ones were yet to be found, we went
off satisfied. The soil was so light, and so easily dug, that many
of the burrows extended to the depth of five or six feet, although
not more than a few inches below the surface, and some of the poor
birds underwent a temporary imprisonment in consequence of the ground
giving way under our weight. The whole island was perforated like a
rabbit-warren, and every hole had its entrance placed due south, a
circumstance which allowed the birds to emerge in our sight almost
all at once, presenting a spectacle highly gratifying to us all. Our
visit to this island took place on the 28th of June 1833.
On the 12th of August, the day after my son procured the two Jerfalcons
mentioned in the second volume of this work, our Captain, my friends
GEORGE SHATTUCK and WILLIAM INGALLS, with four sailors, and another
boat in company, went on a visit to “Perroket Island,” distant about
two miles from the harbour of Bras d’Or. The place is known to all
the cod-fishers, and is celebrated for the number of Puffins that
annually breed there. As we rowed towards it, although we found the
water literally covered with thousands of these birds, the number
that flew over and around the green island seemed much greater,
insomuch that one might have imagined half the Puffins in the world
had assembled there. This far-famed isle is of considerable extent,
its shores are guarded by numberless blocks of rock, and within a few
yards of it the water is several fathoms in depth. The ground rises in
the form of an amphitheatre to the height of about seventy feet, the
greatest length being from north to south, and its southern extremity
fronting the Streight of Belleisle. For every burrow in the island
previously visited by us there seemed to be a hundred here, on every
crag or stone stood a Puffin, at the entrance of each hole another,
and yet the sea was covered and the air filled by them. I had two
double-barrelled guns and two sailors to assist me; and I shot for
one hour by my watch, always firing at a single bird on wing. How
many Puffins I killed in that time I take the liberty of leaving you
to guess.
The burrows were all inhabited by young birds, of different ages and
sizes, and clouds of Puffins flew over our heads, each individual
holding a “lint” by the head. This fish, which measures four or five
inches in length, and is of a very slender form, with a beautiful
silvery hue, existed in vast shoals in the deep water around the
island. The speed with which the birds flew made the fish incline
by the side of their neck. While flying the Puffins emitted a loud
croaking noise, but they never dropped the fish, and many of them,
when brought down by a shot, still held their prey fast. I observed
with concern the extraordinary affection manifested by these birds
towards each other; for whenever one fell dead or wounded on the
water, its mate or a stranger immediately alighted by its side, swam
round it, pushed it with its bill as if to urge it to fly or dive,
and seldom would leave it until an oar was raised to knock it on the
head, when at last, aware of the danger, it would plunge below in
an instant. Those which fell wounded immediately ran with speed to
some hole, and dived into it, on which no further effort was made to
secure them. Those which happened to be caught alive in the hand bit
most severely, and scratched with their claws at such a rate that we
were glad to let them escape. The burrows here communicated in various
ways with each other, so that the whole island was perforated as if
by a multitude of subterranean labyrinths, over which one could not
run without the risk of falling at almost every step. The voices of
the young sounded beneath our feet like voices from the grave, and
the stench was extremely disagreeable, so that as soon as our boats
were filled with birds we were glad to get away.
During the whole of our visit, the birds never left the place, but
constantly attended to their avocations. Here one would rise from
beneath our feet, there, within a few yards of us, another would
alight with a fish, and dive into its burrow, or feed the young that
stood waiting at the entrance. The young birds were far from being
friendly towards each other, and those which we carried with us kept
continually fighting so long as we kept them alive. They used their yet
extremely small and slender bills with great courage and pertinacity,
and their cries resembled the wailings of young whelps. The smaller
individuals were fed by the parents by regurgitation, or received
little pieces of fish which were placed in their mouths; the larger
picked up the fish that were dropped before them; but almost all of
them seemed to crawl to the entrance of the holes for the purpose
of being fed. In all the burrows that communicated with others, a
round place was scooped out on one side of the avenue, in the form of
an oven; while in those which were single, this oven-like place was
found at the end, and was larger than the corridor. All the passages
were flattish above, and rounded beneath, as well as on the sides.
In many instances we found two birds sitting each on its egg in the
same hole.
The Puffin never lays more than one egg, unless the first may have
been destroyed or taken away; nor does it raise more than a single
young one in the season. The time of incubation is probably from
twenty-five to twenty-eight days, although I have not been able to
ascertain the precise period. Both birds work in digging the hole,
using their bills and feet; they also sit alternately on their egg,
although the female engages more industriously in this occupation,
while the male labours harder at the burrow. The egg is pure white
when first deposited, but soon becomes soiled by the earth, as no
nest is formed for its reception. It generally measures two and a half
inches by one and three-fourths, but varies in size according to the
age of the bird, as well as in shape, some being considerably more
rounded at the smaller end than others. When boiled, the white is of
a livid-blue colour. The captain and myself were the only persons of
our party who tried to eat some. The eggs are certainly very bad, and
are never collected by “The Eggers.” The flesh of the birds is very
dark, tough, and so fishy, as to be eatable only in cases of great
want. Two Italians who had come to Labrador to purchase cod-fish,
and were short of provisions, fed upon Puffins daily, to the great
amusement of our party. The fishermen at times, when bait is scarce
along the coast, destroy a great number of these birds, which they
skin like rabbits, and then cut the flesh into slices.
The flight of the Puffin is firm, generally direct, now and then
pretty well sustained. It is able to rise at once from the water or
the land, although at times it runs on both before taking to wing.
This depends much on necessity, for if pushed it flies at once from
the ground, or plunges under the surface of the water. There they
swim, with the wings partially opened, at a small depth, passing
along in the manner of Divers; and by this means they catch their
prey; but at other times they dive to the bottom, many fathoms deep,
for shell-fish and other objects.
During the love season, the males chase each other in the air, on
the water, or beneath its surface, with so much quickness, as to
resemble the ricochets of a cannon-ball. Having kept several for
about a week, I threw them overboard in the harbour where we were
at anchor, and where the water was beautifully clear. On leaving my
gloved hand, they plunged through the air, entered the water, and
swam off, assisting themselves by their wings to the distance of from
fifty to an hundred yards. On coming up, they washed their plumage
for a long time, and then dived in search of food. While on board,
they ran about from the dark towards the light, keeping themselves
erect, and moving with great briskness, until at times close to my
feet, when they would watch my motions like hawks, and if I happened
to look towards them, would instantly make for some hiding-place.
They fed freely and were agreeable pets, only that they emitted an
unpleasant grunting noise, and ran about incessantly during the night,
when each footstep could be counted. When on rocky shores, or islands
with large stones, I observed that the Puffins often flew from one
crag or stone to another, alighting with ease, and then standing erect.
The young, while yet covered with down, are black, with a white patch
on the belly. Their bills do not acquire much of the form which they
ultimately have for several weeks; nor do they assume their perfect
shape for years. I have examined many hundred individuals, among which
I have found great differences in the size and form of the bill. In
fact, the existence of this diversity has induced many persons to
think that we have several species of Puffin on our coasts; but,
after having examined many specimens in Europe, I am decidedly of
opinion that this species is the same that occurs in both continents,
and that we have only one more at all common on our eastern coasts.
The sexes differ in no perceptible degree, only that the males are
somewhat larger. When two years old they may be considered of their
full size, although the bill continues to grow and acquires furrows,
until it becomes as you see it in the Plate.
ALCA ARCTICA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 211.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 792.
MORMON ARCTICUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of the
United States, p. 430.
PUFFIN, OR COULTERNEB, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 542.
Adult Male in summer. Plate CCXIII. Fig. 1.
Bill about the length of the head, nearly as high as long, exceedingly
compressed, at the base as high as the head, obliquely furrowed on
the sides. Upper mandible with a horny rim along the basal margin, its
dorsal line curved from the base, the ridge very narrow but rounded,
the sides rapidly sloped, and marked with three curved oblique grooves,
the edges obtuse, their outline nearly straight, the tip deflected,
very narrow but obtuse. Between the basal rim and the first groove is
a triangular flat space analogous to the nasal groove, in the lower
part of which, close to the edge of the bill, is the linear direct
nostril. Lower mandible with the angle very narrow, and so placed
that the base of the bill is inflected beyond the perpendicular,
the dorsal line a little convex at first, towards the end straight,
the ridge narrow, broader about the middle, the sides nearly flat,
grooved and ridged as in the upper, the edges strong, the tip very
narrow. The gape extends downwards a little beyond the base of the
bill, and is furnished with a soft corrugated extensible membrane.
Head large, oblong, anteriorly compressed. Eye rather small, with bare
orbits; over the upper eyelid an oblong, nearly erect, horny body,
along the lower a more elongated one of the same nature. Neck short
and thick. Body full and rounded. Wings short. Feet short, rather
stout; tibia bare for a short way above the joint. Tarsus very short,
little compressed, anteriorly with a series of small scutella, the
rest with reticular angular scales. Hind toe wanting. Toes of moderate
length, rather slender, scutellate above, connected by reticulated
entire membranes which project a little, the third and fourth toes
about equal, the second considerably shorter, with a narrow marginal
web. Claws strong, of moderate length, compressed, slightly arched,
that of the inner toe much curved and acute.
Plumage close, blended, soft, very short on the head. Wings curved,
short, narrow, acute. Primary quills narrow, incurved, first longest,
second a little shorter, the rest rapidly graduated. Secondaries
very short, small and rounded. Tail very short, slightly rounded, of
sixteen narrow rounded feathers.
Bill with the basal rim and first ridge of upper mandible dull yellow,
the intervening space greyish-blue, basal margin of lower bright
red, first ridge and intervening space as in the upper, the rest
bright red (carmine tinged with vermilion); membrane at the base of
the gape gamboge-yellow, inside of mouth and tongue yellow. Edge of
eyelids vermilion, horny appendages of eyelids greyish-blue. Iris
light blue. Feet vermilion, claws black. Throat and sides of the head
white, that colour extending over the eye, and passing in a narrow
line behind the occiput. Upper part of the head blackish-grey, tinged
with olive, paler anteriorly. The middle of the neck all round, and
all the upper parts of the body, deep black, with blue reflections,
the quills tinged with brown. The whole under surface white, except
the upper part of the sides, which are dusky.
Length to end of tail 11-3/4 inches, to end of claws 13-1/2, extent of
wings 23; bill along the back 2, along the edge of upper mandible 1-1/4;
depth of bill at base 1-5/8, its greatest diameter 5/8; tarsus 1, middle
toe 1-1/2, its claw 1/2. Weight 3/4 lb.
Female. Plate CCXIII. Fig. 2.
The Female is precisely similar to the male, but of somewhat smaller
size.
THE RAZOR-BILLED AUK.
_ALCA TORDA_, LINN.
PLATE CCXIV. MALE AND FEMALE.
A few birds of this species occasionally go as far south as New York
during winter; but beyond that parallel I never met with one. From
Boston eastward many are seen, and some breed on the Seal Islands
off the entrance of the Bay of Fundy. These Auks generally arrive
on our Atlantic coast about the beginning of November, and return
northward to breed about the middle of April. During their stay with
us, they are generally seen singly, and at a greater distance from the
shores than the Guillemots or Puffins; and I have no doubt that they
are able to procure shell-fish at greater depths than these birds.
I have observed them fishing on banks where the bottom was fifteen
or eighteen fathoms from the surface, and, from the length of time
that they remained under water, felt no doubt that they dived to it.
On my voyage round Nova Scotia and across the Gulf of St Lawrence,
we saw some of them constantly. Some had eggs on the Magdeleine
Islands, where, as the inhabitants informed us, these birds arrive
about the middle of April, when the Gulf is still covered with ice.
As we proceeded towards Labrador, they passed us every now and then
in long files, flying at the height of a few yards from the water,
in a rather undulating manner, with a constant beat of the wings,
often within musket-shot of our vessel, and sometimes moving round
us and coming so close as to induce us to believe that they had a
wish to alight. The thermometer indicated 44°. The sight of these
files of birds passing swiftly by was extremely pleasing; each bird
would alternately turn towards us the pure white of its lower parts,
and again the jetty black of the upper. As I expected ere many days
should pass to have the gratification of inspecting their breeding
grounds, I experienced great delight in observing them as they sped
their flight toward the north.
After we had landed, we every day procured Auks, notwithstanding
their shyness, which exceeded that of almost all the other sea-birds.
The fishermen having given me an account of their principal breeding
places, the Ripley proceeded toward them apace. One fair afternoon
we came in view of the renowned Harbour of Whapati Guan, and already
saw its curious beacon, which, being in form like a huge mounted
cannon placed on the elevated crest of a great rock, produced a most
striking effect. We knew that the harbour was within the stupendous
wall of rock before us, but our pilot, either from fear or want of
knowledge, refused to guide us to it, and our captain, leaving the
vessel in charge of the mate, was obliged to go off in a boat, to
see if he could find a passage. He was absent more than an hour.
The Ripley stood off and on, the yards were manned on the look-out,
the sea was smooth and its waters as clear as crystal, but the swell
rose to a prodigious height as it passed sluggishly over the great
rocks that seemed to line the shallows over which we floated. We were
under no apprehension of personal danger, however, for we had several
boats and a very efficient crew; and besides, the shores were within
cannon shot; but the idea of losing our gallant bark and all our
materials on so dismal a coast haunted my mind, and at times those
of my companions. From the tops our sailors called out “Quite shallow
here, Sir.” Up went the helm, and round swung the Ripley like a duck
taken by surprise. Then suddenly near another shoal we passed, and
were careful to keep a sharp look-out until our commander came up.
Springing upon the deck, and turning his quid rapidly from side to
side, he called out, “All hands square the yards,” and whispered to
me “All’s safe, my good Sir.” The schooner advanced towards the huge
barrier, merrily as a fair maiden to meet her beloved; now she doubles
a sharp cape, forces her way through a narrow pass; and lo! before
you opens the noble harbour of Whapati Guan. All around was calm and
solemn; the waters were smooth as glass, the sails fell against the
masts, but the impetus which the vessel had received urged her along.
The lead was heaved at every yard, and in a few minutes the anchor
was dropped.
Reader, I wish you had been there, that you might yourself describe
the wild scene that presented itself to our admiring gaze. We were
separated from the rolling swell of the Gulf of St Lawrence by an
immense wall of rock. Far away toward the east and north, rugged
mounds innumerable rose one above another. Multitudes of frightened
Cormorants croaked loudly as they passed us in the air, and at a
distance fled divers Guillemots and Auks. The mossy beds around us
shone with a brilliant verdure, the lark piped its sweet notes on
high, and thousands of young codfish leaped along the surface of the
deep cove as if with joy. Such a harbour I had never seen before; such
another, it is probable, I may never see again; the noblest fleet that
ever ploughed the ocean might anchor in it in safety. To augment our
pleasures, our captain some days after piloted the Gulnare into it.
But, you will say, “Where are the Auks, we have lost sight of them
entirely.” Never fear, good reader, we are in a delightful harbour,
and anon you shall hear of them.
Winding up the basin toward the north-east, Captain Emery, myself,
and some sailors, all well armed, proceeded one day along the high
and precipitous shores to the distance of about four miles, and at
last reached the desired spot. We landed on a small rugged island. Our
men were provided with long poles, having hooks at their extremities.
These sticks were introduced into the deep and narrow fissures, from
which we carefully drew the birds and eggs. One place, in particular,
was full of birds; it was a horizontal fissure, about two feet in
height, and thirty or forty yards in depth. We crawled slowly into
it, and as the birds affrighted flew hurriedly past us by hundreds,
many of their eggs were smashed. The farther we advanced, the more
dismal did the cries of the birds sound in our ears. Many of them,
despairing of effecting their escape, crept into the surrounding
recesses. Having collected as many of them and their eggs as we could,
we returned, and glad were we once more to breathe the fresh air. No
sooner were we out than the cracks of the sailors’ guns echoed among
the rocks. Rare fun to the tars, in fact, was every such trip, and,
when we joined them, they had a pile of Auks on the rocks near them.
The birds flew directly towards the muzzles of the guns, as readily
as in any other course, and therefore it needed little dexterity to
shoot them.