AN AT ID M— GEESE. 195 



tontained in some letters by the Colonel, published in the Zoologist (40. xiv. 59). 

 He says : — 



"On Feb. 4th, 1879, a large number of White-bellied Geese came [to the 

 "Blackwater], probably from the south, as just before coming to us they 

 appeared at Leigh, on the north side of the mouth of the Thames. There 

 is little or no feed for them there, and only Geese which do not know the 

 country call there, but of course do not stay long. Their ignorance was also 

 shown by their foolishness when they came on our coast ; a great many were 

 shot for five days, but these were very thin. Most likely they had been 

 southward, but had failed to find good feeding ground. I was not on the coast 

 till about Feb. 20th ; by that time the White-bellied Geese were fat and almost 

 unapproachable ; they were then mixed with the Black [-bellied] sort. They stayed, 

 to my knowledge, till March 15th, — I believe much longer. As usual, the 

 White-bellied [Geese] had no more young with them than the Black [-bellied] 

 If, as I suppose, the two varieties aie bred in different parts of the world, the 

 ■cause of failure of breed must be widespread. I wonder whether those who 

 have been at their breeding-places have noticed whichivariety they saw. * * * 

 We have not only the two well-marked varieties, but every intermediate shade 

 — perhaps from intermediate places. •» « * In the winter of 1880-81, » » « we 

 had not many White-bellied Geese ; I had some difficulty in getting a good 

 specimen for you, and another for Capt. Fielden. There were very few young 

 among them, but I think a larger proportion than among the black sort. 

 Last winter [1881-82], we had hardly any White-bellied ones at all. I heard 

 of one being shot among some black ones quite early in October — the only 

 one I heard of being got. My man saw one among a flock of black soon 

 after : and I saw only one White-bellied (a single bird) early in November or 

 late in October, — I forget which. One gunner — always on the coast — said he 

 had seen only one little lot of the White-bellied sort, about a dozen, all the 

 winter." 



Upon the general subject of the Brent Goose on the Essex coast, and upon 

 the varying proportion of young birds to old in different years, Col. Russell 

 says : — 



" The Brent Geese seem to come to the Essex coast pretty regularly about 

 the beginning of the second week in October. Sometimes the first I hear of 

 are not seen at all. With a fair wind they may be heard miles off at sea, far out 

 of sight. In 1S80, my informant (a very experienced gunner) told me he was 

 afraid that there were no young ones, and he was right. Throughout the season 

 from the time of their first arrival, there was not one young one to a hundred 

 old ones. Last October, my informant about their arrival was another gunner, 

 who lives close to high water mark in the part most frequented by the Geese : he 

 told me that there were young ones among them. * * * To repeat the propor- 

 tions * * *:— Young [were] very numerous almost every season for about 

 twelve years up to 1878. 



" 1878-79, about one young Goose to twelve old ones. 



" 1879-80, great numbers of young all the season. 



" 1880-81, about (or less than) one young Goose to a hundred old ones. 



" 1881-82, nearly as many young as old. 



" I do not think that of these birds the young and old migrate separately. 

 « * * The mildness or coldness of the winter has nothing whatever to do with 

 the presence or absence of young Brent Geese. * * » We had a good many Brent 

 Geese this last winter [18S1-82] considering the mildness of the weather. Quite 

 early, there were about 300, and more came from time to time, till there were 

 1000 or more between the Blackwater and Crouch Rivers. * * *. Our coast is 

 more disturbed than ever. People have taken to hunting the fowl in steam- 

 launches. * * * Every bird that swims is driven away — even such rubbish as 

 Scoters — except the Brent Geese, which keep well out of the boat's way, but will 

 not, however, leave the country. I think they will soun cease to visit us, the 

 disturbance getting worse and worse, and the feed failing more and more. The 

 Zoster a marina is gradually disappearing everywhere on the Essex coast and in 



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