99-01-11, Ladyshrike writes:

<< ....BTW, what is a gadfly petrel? Or rather, why are they called 'gadfly'
petrels? Harrison doesn't really address that... >>

The web never ceases to amaze me!!! Your query prompted me into a quick
search. Every search I ever do comes up with interesting and usually the
correct results on the first try and in a matter of seconds. And this one has
utterly astonished me. There is an answer for EVERYTHING imaginable and
unimaginable via this technology. So, check these two sites out.

<A HREF="http://www.antarctic.com.au/encyclopaedia/bio/GaPetrels.html">Gadfly
Petrels</A> http://www.antarctic.com.au/encyclopaedia/bio/GaPetrels.html
This site just flat out tells you. I was totally floored when the example
shown at this site was of all things, the Mottled Petrel. See there... I told
you so and I figured that out all by myself. Discovering this on the net only
verifies what I knew all along from spending too much time at sea without the
internet and the books :-))

<A HREF="http://www.gadfly.org/ythefly.htm">Y the fly ?</A>
http://www.gadfly.org/ythefly.htm
This one goes back to the origin of the word which emerges via Greek mythology
and open perhaps to a bit of interpretation but from a philosophical viewpoint
(if you read between the lines) is rather comparable to my peculiar
philosophy, lifestyle, and way of thinking. I drifted out of the mainstream
of human existence decades ago and have never found my way back ...sighhh.....
:-))

From: Warham, J. 1990. The Petrels, Their Ecology and Breeding Systems.
I came up with the following: "Their powerful and very fast flight is well
displayed at sea, the name 'gadfly petrel' referring to their impetuous
stooping manoeuvres, the old name _Oestrelata_ for the genus coming from the
Greek 'oistrelatos' -- goaded by a gadfly....."

If you can dredge up any more information and interpretations on the
mythological, historical, and ornithological orgin of the term, I'd be
interested in learning more. This could turn into an interesting thread and
perhaps some folks at your literary POB listserv might provide some inspiring
input. I'll run the query by 'tweeters'. There are some pretty bright folks
subscribed here who thrive on dwelving into and picking apart the
technicalities of subjects of this nature which is saying a lot about a
birding listserv which I rank among the best on the internet. --Richard

Richard Rowlett (Pterodroma at aol.com)
47.56N, 122.13W
(Seattle/Bellevue, WA, USA)