254 OUR RARER BIRDS 



bird does not collect into such enormous colonies as the Lesser 

 Black-backed Gull, the Kittiwake, or the Black-headed Gull, 

 but you generally come across a few nests here and there. 

 It breeds on the lofty cliffs rising hundreds of feet out of a 

 restless sea, as well as on the ground along the coast, in little 

 frequented districts. Its favourite place, however, is on an 

 island — either a low sandy one, or a precipitous ocean rock. 

 A few pairs of Herring Gulls breed on the grassy slopes on 

 the north side of the Bass, some distance inland from the top 

 of the cliff ; and I have taken its eggs from the flat summits 

 of small stacks of rocks. In fine, the Herring Gull adapts 

 itself so readily to circumstances that suitable breeding- 

 places may be found almost anywhere along the coast; hence 

 the birds are scattered over a vast extent, and have not to 

 collect in large colonies in a few favoured localities. When 

 on the cliffs the nest is usually a much more bulky structure 

 than when built on the ground. It is made of turf, dry 

 seaweed, stalks of marine herbage, and lined with grass. 

 Some nests are hollows in the ground, simply lined with 

 semi-dry grass ; and I have occasionally seen the eggs lying 

 almost on the bare ground. At the Bass the Herring Gulls 

 are remarkably wary, and fly from their nests at the least 

 alarm, as if conscious that their showy dress would only lead 

 to the discovery of their treasures. I have frequently seen 

 them run quickly for some distance from their nests before 

 they took wing. At the Femes many Herring Gulls nest 

 on the low herbage-covered islands, mixing and fraternising 

 with the Lesser Black-backed Gulls. When their nests are 

 menaced by danger the Herring Gulls become exceedingly 

 clamorous and anxious, flying hurriedly about, or swooping 

 round the head of an intruder, all the time uttering their 

 harsh chattering cries. When their nests are built on the 

 cliffs they do not seem so anxious, and I have known them 

 fly right away as soon as I disturbed them from their eggs. 



