in ornithology; a genus of birds, belonging to the order of anseres. The beak is somewhat compressed; and without teeth; the mandibles are equal, the superior one being crooked at the point; the feet are palmated, the hind claw being feeble, without any toe. Mr Latham (See his Index Ornithologicus, p. 820.) enumerates 24 species, which are principally distinguished by their colour. The most remarkable are,

1. The cinerea, or petrel. The size of this bird is rather superior to that of the common gull: the bill very strong, much hooked at the end, and of a yellow colour. The nostrils are composed of two large tubes, lodged in one fleath: the head, neck, whole under side of the body, and tail, are white: the back and coverts of the wings ash-coloured: the quill-feathers dusky: and the legs yellowish. In lieu of a back toe, it has only a sort of spur, or sharp straight nail. These birds feed on the blubber or fat of whales, &c. which being soon convertible into oil, supplies them constantly with means of defence, as well as provision for their young, which they cast up into their mouths. They are likewise said to feed on forrel, which they use to qualify the unctuous diet they live on. This species inhabits the isle of St Kilda; makes its appearance there in November, and continues the whole year, except September and October; it lays a large, white, and very brittle egg; and the young are hatched the middle of June. No bird is of such use to the islanders as this: the fulmar supplies them with oil for their lamps, down for their beds, a delicacy for their tables, a balm for their wounds, and a medicine for their distempers. The fulmar is also a certain prognosticator of the change of the wind: if it comes to land, no west wind is expected for some time; and the contrary when it returns and keeps the sea. The whole genus of petrels have a peculiar faculty of spouting from their bills, to a considerable distance, a large quantity of pure oil; which they do, by way of defence, into the face of any one that attempts to take them: so that they are, for the sake of this panacea, seized by furprife; as this oil is subservient to the above-mentioned medical purposes. Martin tells us, it has been used in London and Edinburgh with success in rheumatic cases. Frederick Martens, who had opportunity of seeing vast numbers of these birds at Spitzbergen, observes, that they are very bold, and resort after the whale-fishers in great flocks; and that, when a whale is taken, they will, in spite of all endeavours, light on it and pick out large lumps of fat, even when the animal is alive: That the whales are often discovered at sea by the multitudes of them flying; and that when one of the former are wounded, prodigious multitudes immediately follow its bloody track. He adds, that it is a most glutinous bird, eating till it is forced to disgorge itself.

2. The puffinus, or shear-water, is 15 inches in length; the breadth 31; the weight 17 ounces: the bill is an inch and three quarters long; nostrils tubular, but not very prominent: the head, and whole upper side of the body, wings, tail, and thighs, are of a footy blackness; the under side from chin to tail, and inner coverts of the wings, white: the legs weak, and compressed sidewise; dusky behind, whitish before. These birds are found in the Calf of Man; and, as Mr Ray supposes, in the Scilly isles. They resort to the former in February; take a short possession of the rabbit-burrows, and then disappear till April. They lay one egg, white and blunt at each end; and the young are fit to be taken the beginning of August; when great numbers are killed by the person who farms the isle: they are salted and barrelled; and when they are boiled, are eaten with potatoes. During the day they keep at sea, fishing; and towards evening return to their young; whom they feed, by discharging the contents of their stomachs into their mouths; which by that time is turned into oil: by reason of the backward situation of their legs, they sit quite erect. They quit the isle the latter end of August, or beginning of September; and, from accounts lately received from navigators, we have reason to imagine that, like the storm-finch, they are dispersed over the whole Atlantic ocean. This species inhabits also the Orkney isles, where it makes its nest in holes on the earth near the shelves of the rocks and headlands: it is called there the tyre; and is much valued, both on account of its being a food, and for its feathers. The inhabitants take and salt them in August for winter provisions, when they boil them with cabbage. They also take the old ones in March; but they are then poor, and not so well tasted as the young: they appear first in those islands in February.

3. The pelagica, or stormy petrel, is about the bulk of the house-swallow: the length six inches; the extent of wings, 13. The whole bird is black, except the coverts of the tail and vent-feathers, which are white: the bill is hooked at the end: the nostrils tubular: the legs slender, and long. It has the same faculty of spouting oil from its bill as the other species: and Mr Brunnich tells us, that the inhabitants of the Ferroe isles make this bird serve the purposes of a candle, by drawing a wick through the mouth and rump, which being lighted, the flame is fed by the fat and oil of the body. Except in breeding-time, it is always at sea; and is seen all over the vast Atlantic ocean, at the greatest distance Prococeria distance from land; often following the vessels in great flocks, to pick up any thing that falls from on board: for trial sake, chopped straw has been flung over, which they would stand on with expanded wings; but were never observed to settle on or swim in the water: it prefigures bad weather, and cautions the seamen of the approach of a tempest, by collecting under the stern of the ships: it braves the utmost fury of the storm, sometimes skimming with incredible velocity along the hollows of the waves, sometimes on the summits: Clutius makes it the Camilla of the sea.

Vel mare per medium fluviu suspensa tumenti Ferret ier, celere nec ingentem aquore plantas. Virg.

She swept the seas; and, as she skimmed along, Her flying feet unbathe'd on billows hung. Dryden.

These birds are the cyphelli of Pliny, which he places among the apodes of Aristotle; not because they wanted feet, but were kassonizos, or had bad or useless ones; an attribute he gives to these species, on a supposition that they were almost always on the wing. In August 1772, Mr Pennant found them on the rocks called Macdonald's Table, off the north end of the isle of Skye; so conjectures they breed there. They lurked under the loose stones, but betrayed themselves by their twittering noise.

In Mr White's Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales we have a figure of the fuliginous petrel, with a whitish beak; which he takes to be a variety of the Prococeria Equinoctialis of Linnaeus. It is nearly of the size of a raven; its colour is a deep footy brown or blackish; on the chin there is a small patch of white running down a little on each side from the lower mandible; the beak is of yellowish white. See Plate CCCCXVI. Captain Bligh, in his Voyage to the South Seas, in S. Lat. 60. 1. and W. Long. 71. 45. saw both petrels and pintadas; some of which he took with baited hooks.