504 THE GANNET 



beak from 7 in. to 7.4 in. The walls of the skull of the 

 adult are very dense, and show no suture, adds Mr. Pycraft, 

 the cranium being rather flat, and the cavity which con- 

 tains the brain being by no means large. Dr. Shufeldt 

 has described it more minutely than anyone else. In the 

 embryo and very young nestling, Mr. Pycraft informs 

 me, the beak contains a deep fossa, which gradually fills 

 up, but is not I observe entirely gone at seven weeks. 

 This has been shown by Mr. H. Gronvold in the annexed 

 drawing, which was taken from an embryo ready for 

 hatching — received from the Bass Rock. 



SKULL OF AN EMBRYO. 



The Beak. The sheath of the beak is compound, and 

 furnished with the sharpest cutting edges, very hard and 

 slightly serrated, the serrations pointing inwards, and 

 little chance would any fish have of escaping from them. 

 On either side of the upper mandible, at its margin, is seen 

 the joint, or dentation already alluded to, and no better 

 device for grasping a Gannet's slippery prey could there be. 

 On holding out a stick for a Gannet to seize, as I have 



