102 NOTES ON THE NATURAL HISTORY OF THE BELL ROCK. 



way to investigate. Judge my astonishment at finding 

 "Mister Phalacrocorax Carlo" such is the cormorant's 

 scientific title standing Horatius-like holding the diminutive 

 passage against all comers. Wisps of feathers, with shreds 

 of skin .adhering to them, lay strewn in front of him, while 

 his effective " fi,9b ' gleamed gory from the carnage. Need- 

 less to $tate, his r ejectment was summarily effected. When in 

 pursuit : .of pry * thsiOmefchod of diving is conspicuously 

 different from other birds of the diving fraternity, and they 

 may be identified at a long distance by this peculiarity alone. 

 Bracing themselves together, they spring forward as if sur- 

 mounting some imaginary obstacle on the surface, the entire 

 body assuming the form of an arc, reminding one of a fractious 

 pony in the act of "bucking." The ducks, on the other hand, 

 with wings half open, merely topple over and under, turning 

 on their own axis, so to speak. Having secured a fish, it 

 is brought to the surface, where, after some preliminary 

 adjustments to facilitate transit, it disappears head first, the 

 long neck denoting its course by " swelling wisibly." This is 

 the bird which the Chinese train to fish for them. A ring 

 is placed on the bird's neck, which prevents it appropriating 

 its earnings for its own use. Whenever a swollen neck 

 appears the owner is hauled on board the " sampan," and the 

 " swelling " reduced by a rough and ready form of massage. 

 Occasionally the constricting ring is removed, and the bird 

 permitted to enjoy its catch as a stimulant to further 

 exertions. History records the use of this bird for similar 

 purposes in our own country in the olden times, a leather 

 strap being used instead of the ring. Last year, fishermen in 

 the south of England petitioned for power to destroy these 

 birds at all seasons on the plea of the destruction caused 

 by them amongst fish in the estuaries. The cormorant 

 measures three feet in length, and belongs to the pelican 

 family, of which we have but two other British representatives 

 the shag, a smaller edition of the cormorant by eight inches, 

 and the gannet or solan goose. 



On several occasions during the month a seal was observed 



