158 BIRDS OF GUERNSEY. 



the Islands, Vcarving, however, in numbers in 

 different years : sometimes it is very numerous, and 

 affords good sport during the winter to the fisher- 

 men, who generally take a gun in the boat with 

 them as soon as the close season is over, sometimes 

 before. The flocks generally consist mostly of 

 young birds of the year ; the fully adult birds, 

 however, though fewer in number, are in sufficient 

 numbers to make a very fair show. 



Professor Ansted includes it in his list, but only 

 marks it as occurring in Guernsey and Sark ; 

 it is, however, quite as common about Herm and 

 Alderney. There is no specimen at present in the 

 Museum. 



137. Mute Swan. Ci/gnus olor, Linnaeus. 

 French, " Cygne tubercule." — I do not believe this 

 bird has ever visited the Channel Islands in a 

 thoroughly wild state, though it is pretty widely 

 spread over Europe ; its range, however, being 

 generally more to the east than the Channel 

 Islands. Mr. Couch, however, at page 4939 of the 

 ' Zoologist' for 1874, records the occurrence of two 

 Mute Swans on the 7th of September at the Braye 

 Pond, where they were shot. He also says that 

 "five others passed over the Island the same day; 

 they were flying low, and, judging from their colour, 

 were young birds." As no one in the Islands keeps 

 Swans, these were most probably a family party 



