THE BIRDS OF CUMBERLAND. 173 



in fact extensive mosses in the neighbourhood of 

 the Solway. Inland, there are two large breeding 

 stations at Denton fell and Bolton fell, and here 

 also the birds build their nests in the heather. 

 Another colony exists at Greystoke Park, and was 

 visited in 1884 by Mr. Hodgson, who thus describes 

 it : — " The locality is a long shallow pool, with islets 

 of rushes on which the nests are constructed, when 

 I saw it last, the later broods were hatched and the 

 place swarmed with young birds, from a few hours 

 to probably a few weeks old. They scuttled about 

 the pool with great animation, swimming and diving 

 with agility, and quickly hiding among the rushes 

 and equiseta, when any danger threatened. The 

 old birds are quite valorous in defence of their 

 young, and when one of my boys, who is a promising 

 ornithologist, managed to capture one of a callow 

 brood, he was attacked with such impetuosity by 

 the bulk of the old birds present, that he was glad 

 to release the captive. About two hundred and 

 fifty pairs bred there this season." 



At Moorthwaite, near Crofton, these Gulls nest 

 upon an island in the centre of the tarn, which, 

 including the island, embraces an area of about nine 

 acres. This station was explored during the present 

 summer (1885), by Mr. B. Johnson, who calculated 

 that there were between two and three hundred 

 pairs of breeding birds. A few years prior to 

 1829, as narrated by Dr. Stanley, a pair of Great 

 Black-backed Gulls left Devoke water for Ennerdale 

 lake, and there " forcibly dispossessed a colony of 

 Blackcaps, who for years had bred on a rocky island 



