THE BAIRD CORMORANT. 855 
sprightly than the larger species,and also exceedingly shy. An interview at close 
quarters is impossible, and we must employ stealth to get close enough to one 
to note the lustrous black plumage with the flashing iridescence of violet and 
green and purple, the curious feather-tufts like budding horns, and the blood- 
red eyes, which impart to their owners a fierce, not to say wicked, appearance. 
Under apprehension of danger, the bird will crane its neck at every conceiva- 
ble angle, punctuating its moments of anxiety with a flirt of its mobile tail— 
that is, if that useful member 
can be spared from its fre- 
quent duty of assisting the 
bird to maintain a precarious 
foothold on some slight pro- 
jection of the cliff-side. Now 
and then also the bird voids 
vigorously, distributing an 
impartial whitewash over all 
surrounding objects. 
When the birds of a colony 
quit their nests, they launch 
out swiftly, wagging their 
heads from side to side if the 
danger is above them. They 
may join the Puffins and 
Gulls for a few rounds of 
inspection, but oftener they 
settle in the water at some 
distance from the shore, a 
large company of them look- 
ing and acting very much like 
a flock of black geese. It re- 
quires quite an effort on the 
bird’s part to rise from the 
MakenowtherGrendille Arch Rock. Photo by the Author, Water, but this is done with a 
BAIRD CORMORANTS AT NEST. single motion of the wings, 
unassisted by the feet, as 
would be the case with heavy ducks and loons. If the Shag has been diving, 
it may burst out of the water with the acquired impetus of the chase; and 
once under way, its flight is swift and vigorous and not altogether 
ungraceful. 
Baird Cormorants are late nesters. Fresh eggs may be taken by the 
middle of June, but the first of July is nearer the height of the season. Nests 
are bracket-shaped, or quadrispherical, oftener than completely crater-shaped ; 
