THE GANNET 



{Sula hassana) 



Early in the vernal year — sometimes before the bleak dreary 

 winds of March are hushed — the Gannet stays its roaming life 

 and repairs to its breeding-places. In our islands these are few 

 and far between. By far the best locality for studying the 

 nesting economy of the Gannet is the Bass — that wide-famed 

 mass of basaltic rocks standing like a sentinel in the Firth of 

 Forth, guarding the metropolis of bonny Scotland. This 

 noble rock is seared and furrowed by many a scar, the buffet- 

 ing of storm and sea for ages, and is a familiar object for 

 many miles round. I will ask the reader to repair with me 

 to this lonely sea-girt rock and make himself acquainted 

 with the Gannet and its nest. 



The Bass is best reached from North Berwick by a 

 pleasant walk of three miles, either along the coast of the 

 Forth or through the charming highways, the hedges of which 

 are fragrant with a wealth of sweetbriar, to Canty Bay. 

 From here the rock is two miles from shore, although it does 

 not look half that distance. Upon reaching the Bass a few 

 Gannets may be seen sailing dreamily about ; but you can 

 form no idea of their vast numbers until you climb the rugged 

 hill, unless you elect to sail round and view the majestic 

 cliffs from the sea. Getting on shore at the only landing- 

 place, a short climb up the steep and rugged base of the cliffs 

 brings us to the ruins of an old fortress, whose moss and 



