104 THE GANNET 



Act to protect sea-birds, John Melville, fishery officer at 

 Girvan, even reported an increase in the number of herrings 

 ("Report on The Herring Fisheries," p. 146), which did not 

 look as if the birds consumed too many. The fecundity of 

 sea-fish is something altogether incredible, and the more 

 they are preyed upon the more they seem to multiply ! 

 At the Bass Rock there is an idea that the fish are 

 attracted by the droppings of the birds, which seems quite 

 possible. 



On one ledge of rock, running into the sea, on the west side 

 of the Craig, called, I believe, Stranny Point, from which a 

 small regiment of Gannets flew away on the boat's approach, 

 lay two or three parcels of regurgitated fish, which had been 

 ejected by the birds on being disturbed by our approach. It 

 was not until I had landed, at some risk of a good wetting, 

 that they were noticed, and at once carefully examined, when 

 it was found that these ejected pellets consisted entirely 

 of small fry. These pellets were of considerable size, and 

 in one alone there were about fifty-eight little fish, which, 

 from their condition, it was evident had not long been 

 swallowed. The Gannets may have been swimming 

 when they met and regaled themselves with a " ball " of 

 pollack or coal-fish fry, little fish averaging less than two 

 inches, as it seems improbable that they should have got 

 them by plunging. 



