The Sea-birds’ Nursery 
through the water at a great pace, and 
enables it to catch the slippery, active 
fish in great numbers. When they are 
thus drying themselves in the sun they 
look very curious. Those yellow 
patches on their throats are a sort of 
pouch. Though not able to hold such 
a quantity of fish as the pouch of the 
pelican, which is as big as a small 
portmanteau and can hold half a pailful 
of fish, the cormorants are able to pack 
away a few fish at a time in them when 
they have made a long journey out to 
sea, perhaps in rough weather, and have 
to bring back the daily provisions for 
their young ones. 
These young ones are at first most 
ungainly, uncanny-lcoking little wretches, 
quite bare, and sooty-black ; they look 
very curious creatures, and for a long 
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