74 AN EAST COAST NATURALIST 



tion, excitedly flew upwards, becoming sadly en- 

 tangled in the meshes of the nets, and were easily 

 captured. 



THE CORMORANT 



The Cormorant, only a few years ago, was by no 

 means a rare bird in this locality : even in my 

 recollection it has become much scarcer than 

 formerly, when as an ardent youth I delightedly 

 watched it perched upon the top of a stake on 

 Breydon, resting, or preening its feathers. Old 

 gunners speak of having seen several stakes occupied 

 at a time by quite a party of these birds, their 

 quest being the various fishes swimming over the 

 flats that were at that time so little "grown up" 

 that water usually covered them even at low tide, 

 or was absent but for a very short period. The 

 Grey Mullet (Mugil capita) was a favourite prey of 

 the Cormorant. 



In Sir Thomas Browne's 1 time the Cormorants 

 nested at Reedham "upon trees whence King 

 Charles the first was wont to bee supply ed." In 

 Lubbock's 2 time it still nested around Fritton Decoy 



1 Natural History of Norfolk, p. n. Southwell's edition. 



2 Fauna of Norfolk, by the Rev. R. Lubbock, 1845. 



