BLACK-HEADED GULLS IN ESSEX (1899). 187 



the nest the decaying remains of her young one, and an empty 

 egg shell. This meant a terrible bird tragedy, some evil disposed 

 crow, or could it be a Black-backed Gull, had evidently killed the 

 mother after a gallant struggle, and devoured portions of the 

 young one, and probably sucked the egg. 



"With chastened feelings I walked on to the Decoy startling 

 the ducks and coots and moorhens from among the thick 

 clumps of tall rushes, and then sweeping the marsh with a pair 

 of Zeiss glasses discovered bv their help far away to the west- 

 ward more Black-headed Gulls hovering low over some rushes, 

 which I knew denoted more nests. 



" On arriving at my destination I found a large sheet of fresh 

 water, and was rejoiced to find another strong colony. In all I 

 calculated about seventy birds, a.nd though the water was deep 

 and wide, I managed to wade right out into the middle among 

 the rushes and was well rewarded. 



" Here the nests were completely hidden by the tall thick 

 reeds. I found over twelve nests many with eggs and one with 

 four, some young ones just hatched, and four young birds sitting 

 floating on the water hard by who never moved an inch though 

 I nearly stepped on them. The nests were large substantial 

 structures of considerable height, but clumsily made and almost 

 conical on the top. I found one egg floating in the water, 



" I did not stop long to hunt for more, being very well satis- 

 fied, besides the muddy water stunk in a horrible manner and my 

 boots began to let the water in, causing me considerable discom- 

 fort, and all the while the parent birds were in the utmost con- 

 sternation and very nearly knocked off my cap several times in 

 their endeavour to frustrate my search. 



" On my way back I came across another diminutive colony 

 of six or eight birds in a distant ditch, where I found a nest in 

 course of construction, so that probably detached or smaller 

 colonies breed all over these vast flat marshes. 



" In all there may have been nearly one hundred birds 

 breeding in this neighbourhood this year ; a strong contrast to the 

 meagre twenty I found last summer. I am inclined also to 

 believe that the gulls, who are very capricious creatures, first 

 began to build their nests around the small pond mentioned 

 above and then deserted them for some unknown reason for the 

 larger fleet I had just visited. 



" The Black-headed Gulls have several distinct cries. One 



