ly
more than the Admiralty three miles from the land; but had scarcely lost
sight of Guernsey, and were well within sight of the Caskets, when we
fell in with the Shearwaters. They accompanied the steamer for some
little way, at times flying close up, and I had an excellent opportunity
of watching them both with and without my glass, and have therefore no
doubt of the species. There was a heavyish sea at the time, and the
Shearwaters were generally flying under the lee of the waves, just
rising sufficiently to avoid the crest of the wave when it broke. They
flew with the greatest possible ease, and seemed as if no sea or gale of
wind would hurt them; they never got touched by the breaking sea, but
just as it appeared curling over them they rose out of danger and
skimmed over the crest; they never whilst I was watching them actually
settled on the water, though now and then they dropped their legs just
touching the water with their feet.

The Great Shearwater is not mentioned in Professor Ansted's list, and
there is no specimen in the Museum.

174. MANX SHEARWATER. _Puffinus anglorum_, Temminck. French, "Petrel
Manks."--The Manx Shearwater can only be considered as an occasional
wanderer to the Channel Islands, and never by any means so common as it
is sometimes on the opposite side of the Channel about Torbay,
especially in the early autumn. I have one Guernsey specimen, however,
killed near St. Samson's on the 28th September, 1876.[39] As far as I
can make out the Manx Shearwater does not breed in any part of the
Channel Islands, but being rather of nocturnal habits at its
breeding-stations, and remaining in the holes and under the rocks where
its eggs are during the day, it may not have been seen during the
breeding-season; but did it breed anywhere in the Islands more birds,
both old and young, would be seen about in the early autumn when the
young first begin to leave their nests; and the Barbelotters would
occasionally come across eggs and young birds when digging for Puffins'
eggs.

The Manx Shearwater is not included in Professor Ansted's list, and
there is no specimen in the Museum.

175. FULMAR PETREL. _Fulmarus glacialis_, Linnaeus. French, "Petrel
fulmar."--The Fulmar Petrel, wandering bird as it is, especially during
the autumn, at which time of year it has occurred in all the western
counties of England, very seldom finds its way to the Channel Islands,
as the only occurrence of which I am aware is