174 The Irish Naturalist. 



previously found in other hedges in the district. Arrived at 

 the edge of the bog we were joined by Mr. Digby, J. P., agent to 

 his cousin, Lord Digby, the owner of the estate, under whose 

 care the " gulleries" are carefully preserved, and have in 

 consequence enormously increased in size of late years — a 

 wise as well as humane act of protection, for these birds are of 

 great service to the farmer, and destroy hundreds of grubs and 

 worms, and their appearance should be welcomed by the 

 agriculturist even- where. Our part)' having been reinforced 

 by several ladies, we passed through a couple of fields to where 

 the bog rose in front of us. I use the word " rose" advisedly, 

 for, like many of the larger Irish bogs, it rises, at first quite 

 suddenly, and then in a long smooth ascent, from the margin 

 to the centre, a distance of over half a mile. It is in the 

 central portion, where the bog is intersected by a maze of 

 pools and dangerous quagmires, that the gulls have made their 

 great colonies, and thither we were piloted under the skilful 

 guidance of Mr. Digby, who appeared acquainted with every 

 pool and tuft of heather of the whole region. This pilotage w r as 

 indeed necessary, for danger lurks in the bewildering network 

 of water and soft moss that stretches on every hand, and ere 

 we left, several of our party had learned, by little bits of 

 personal experience more surprising than pleasant, the reason 

 why this bog is feared even by the hard)' and experienced 

 cottagers around its margins. 



We were of course too late to see the eggs of the Black- 

 heads, and already the majority of the young birds were able 

 to fly ; but as we advanced into the centre of the breeding- 

 ground, and as hundreds upon hundreds of gulls rose as we 

 cautiously wended our way onward, we saw dozens of deserted 

 nests, and soon came on plenty of young birds running like 

 rats among the rushes and grass, or skulking in corners of the 

 pools ; while all the time continued the musical din caused by 

 the cries of hundreds of gulls. To watch the myriads of 

 graceful birds eddying overhead, and to listen to the wonder- 

 ful clamour, was most interesting ; but, on botanical things 

 intent, what struck me most was the curious and abrupt 

 change in the character of the vegetation on those portions of 

 the bog which the gulls had selected as breeding-haunts. Out- 

 side of this area the usual bog-flora reigned — lying {Cat lima 

 vulgaris^ Bog Heather (£rica tetra/ix), Scirpus ccespitosus and 



