140 AN EAST COAST NATURALIST 



cannot remember ever before seeing a colony of Rooks 

 in the heart of the town, although rookeries are 

 common enough in various parts of Gorleston. 



THE SHAG 



The Shag (Phalacrocorax graculus) makes an ex- 

 ceedingly interesting pet. I purchased one of a 

 smacksman in March 1898. He was giving it a 

 swim in the river, keeping it captive by means of a 

 long cord tied to its leg, and by means of which he 

 dragged it ignominiously on board the smack again. 

 I kept it for some weeks. It soon answered to my 

 call, and would catch easily the fish thrown to it. 

 When hungry it uttered a harsh, discordant, 

 trumpeting note, unlike another I kept later, which 

 made no sound at all. It ate, or rather swallowed, 

 about a pound and a half of fish per day, including 

 bones (mostly cut-up fish heads and skate); the 

 bones it vomited, after digesting the muscular parts 

 around them. Another came into my possession 

 in September 1903. Like its predecessors, it never 

 drank or even dipped its bill into water while in my 

 care. It became exceedingly tame, and would come 

 into the house boldly, as if it preferred the warmth 



