248 THE GANNET 



Gannets would have had 3400 parents, and I am not inclined 

 to think there could have been more than another thousand 

 pairs which failed to rear their young, or whose nests were 

 inaccessible, although Wolley seems to have been told there 

 were more. If to this we add 200 for non-breeders, it only 

 makes a total of 5600 adult Gannets. 



A fourth way is by mental comparison with Mr. Harrison's 

 8000 tame Geese at Halsall {see p. 111). After reflecting on 

 what we saw on my last two visits, as compared with the 

 photographs which Mr. Harrison furnished me with, I 

 should judge the adult Gannet population on the Bass to 

 fall short of the tame Geese at Halsall by nearly a 

 thousand. 



These methods of approximate counting give us the 

 following results : — 



By Professor Fleming's estimate . . 

 Mr. Evans's estimate . . 

 Mr. Evans's photographs 

 counting piebald birds 

 the young ones formerly taken 

 comparison with tame Geese , . 



Whatever the number be, it is possible that there were 

 more 150 years ago than there are now, the upper 

 portion of their breeding area having undergone much 



