BIRDS OF THE SEA 45i 



of basalt, which elsewhere guards the island from 

 the rage of the Atlantic, dwindles to a mere boun- 

 dary line, and the brown heath comes nearly to the 

 water's edge. Here the evil-doer enters his owm 

 domain, and as though in subtle sympathy with 

 his crimes, the dim heathery ridges receive him 

 and shelter him from recriminating eyes. 



The Great Skua is a bird of uniform brown plum- 

 age, with black bill and feet. A glance at the sharp 

 claws and powerful hooked beak shows it to be a 

 true bird of prey. It is the chief of the group of 

 Parasitic Gulls, living mainly on the fish caught 

 by the smaller races, but it nevertheless frequently 

 destroys the Terns and Kittiwakes themselves, and 

 has been seen in the act of killing a bird even so 

 large as the Herring Gull. The eggs, usually two 

 in number, are of a deep olive-brown streaked with 

 black, and the nest, formed of moss and heather, 

 is placed on the bare heath without shelter or con- 

 cealment of any kind. Indeed, the Great Skua 

 appears to rely entirely upon its native ferocity for 

 the protection of its home. When the breeding 

 haunts are approached the birds at once sweep 

 down upon the intruder, striking furiously with 

 wing and claw. 



A second species, the Arctic or Richardson's 

 Skua, is much more widely distributed, nesting in 

 many localities in the north lands and constantly 

 occurring on migration about the English coasts. 

 It follows the larger race in its habits, being 

 essentially predatory and parasitic. The chief 

 characteristic of the Arctic Skua is that two distinct 

 forms occur — sometimes in the same nest— one 



