SULID^ — THE GANNETS — SULA. 173 



The Soland Goose, or Gannet, is a bird peculiar to the iSTorthern Atlantic Ocean, 

 and is found both on its eastern and western shores, ranging in America as far soiith 

 as the New England States, and in Europe to the coasts of Great Britain. Farther 

 south than this its appearance is comparatively rare. This is a northern species, and 

 is more or less resident wherever it is found. 



The Gannet is generally given as a resident of Greenland ; but Professor Reinhardt 

 states that it is very rare there, and only accidental. It is common in winter off the 

 coast of Maine, and formerly bred on Gannet Rock, near Grand Menan. From time 

 to time specimens are obtained on the coast of Massachusetts ; but this is not of fre- 

 quent occurrence, and examples thus seen are usually immature birds. Its appear- 

 ance in the bays and inlets of Long Island is so very rare that, according to Giraud, 

 it is not generally known to the hvmters ; but he received a fine specimen that had 

 been shot on the South Bay, opposite Bellport, and he had also known of several 

 others being procured in the vicinity of New York. Audubon has observed the 

 Gannet as far south as the Gulf of Mexico. 



On the opposite side of the Atlantic, Mr. H. Saunders met with this species in con- 

 siderable numbers, fishing off Cape Trafalgar, in December ; and Yarrell mentions its 

 appearance at Madeira, and even as far south as Southern Africa. 



Dr. Robert 0. Cunningham, in the " Ibis " of January, 1866, gives a very complete 

 account of the history, distribution, and habits of this species, as gathered from the 

 accounts given by the earlier writers, whose works date as far back even as the year 

 975 A. T>. The name of Gannet is an Old English one (Anglo-Saxon, gemot ; Old 

 English, gante) ; but the origin of the word Soland cannot be satisfactorily made out. 

 There was formerly an idea prevalent that this bird had the habit of hatching out 

 its egg by covering this with its feet ; and by some the name is associated with this 

 belief. The Gannet appears to be widely distributed throughout the North Atlantic, 

 on the western shores of Europe, and in the eastern waters of North America. Its 

 breeding-places are not numerous ; but in these the birds collect in immense num- 

 bers. In the waters of Great Britain and Ireland some of them continue throughout 

 the year ; and the same is probably true in regard to the mouth of the St. Lawrence 

 River. There are but six places known in the British waters where this species 

 breeds, but it is also numerous in various portions where it has never been known 

 to breed. It also breeds in the Faroe Islands and in islands on the coast of Iceland. 

 It migrates to the shores of Holland, France, Spain, Portugal, the Mediterranean, and 

 Madeira. In America it has but few breeding-places, is common on the coast, and 

 though found as far north as Greenland, is not known to breed there. 



One of the most celebrated breeding-places of the Gannet is the Bass Rock, at the 

 mouth of the Firth of Forth, near the old town of North Berwick. This island is a 

 huge mass of greenstone trap, over four hundred feet in height, and with sides mostly 

 bold and perpendicular. It has on the southeast its only landing-place. UricB, Gulls, 

 Cormorants, Razor-bills, and Puffins breed on this rock, in common with the Gannet. 

 The latter are met with in great numbers on all the several faces of the rock, and 

 even in the immediate neighborhood of the landing-place. Macgillivray, who vis- 

 ited this rock in 1831, estimated the number of SuIcb at about twenty thousand ; 

 and Dr. Cunningham, whose visit was made in 1862, estimated their number then at 

 about the same. These birds make their appearance at the island from the middle 

 of February to the first of March, and take their departure in October, though a few 

 remain there all winter. 



The earlier writers speak of the nests of the Gannet as being made of sticks ; but 

 all now agree that at present no other materials are used in their construction than 



