Something about Sea Birds. 29 



We stood gaping at one another in unfeigned astonishment. 

 Was the miss to be attributed to the rolling of the boat, or the 

 swell ? Certainly not ; for in such a crowd all nicety of aim 

 would have been useless. Had we forgotten to put in the shot ? 

 Still very improbable. The fishermen explained the mystery; 

 and I doubt not your ornithological readers have done the 

 same : the feathers on the breasts and necks of sea birds are 

 so closely matted together, and form a covering so smooth 

 and compact, that shots striking in front will not enter, but 

 instantly glance off, without doing the slightest injury. As 

 soon as we understood our error we were determined to rectify 

 it, and were loading again in an instant, Now, as each little 

 covey (for they fly in coveys, like partridges) passed over us, 

 we took them in the rear, and to every barrel a bird fell thud 

 into the water. This plan answered delightfully; and, finding 

 its efficacy, our spirits, which were somewhat damped by the 

 first disappointment, now rose with the excitement of the 

 scene ; and though, partly owing to the motion of the boat, 

 our shots were not invariably successful, yet we soon managed 

 to cover the greater part of the bottom of the boat with the 

 slain. Among them was a considerable number of the black- 

 headed gull, in all the varieties of plumage : the head of this 

 bird changes from light grey to sooty black, without moulting ; 

 the feathers themselves undergoing the change. I am not 

 aware whether this is generally known. 



The birds, after the first rush, soon diminished in numbers, 

 and in about an hour became so thin as scarcely to afford us 

 the chance of a shot ; so we proceeded on our way past Sun 

 Corner, and found that between this point and the Needles 

 a whole colony of corvorants had established themselves, and 

 the old hens were visible by dozens sitting on their nests. One 

 of our party was a collector, and a most inimitable preserver of 

 birds, and the only individual I ever knew who could give to 

 a stuffed bird the appearan.ce of a living one : he was par- 

 ticularly desirous of obtaining specimens of this bird ; and we 

 were all determined to make the attempt. Precisely under 

 the cliff where the corvorants were was a narrow slip of 

 beach. On this we landed with great difficulty, as the swell of 

 the sea continued very heavy, and the bottom is here very bad ; 

 and, being almost perpendicularly under the birds, we could 

 plainly see their long necks and stiff still heads poked out to 

 seaward : so we spent much time, swan-shot, bullets, and ex- 

 cellent powder; and finding that they did not move their heads 

 one inch to the right or left, we got into our boat, and floated 

 onward with the tide towards the Needles ; resolving, how- 

 ever, to try the effect of shots from above, as it was very clear 



