CH. I.] HABITS OF TAME GULLS. 157 



which had been caught young, and tamed, have 

 continued to keep up their intimacy with those 

 who reared them, after they had gained the full 

 use of their wings and were at perfect liberty ; 

 though they took advantage of it to go away every 

 year at the breeding-season, and might have been 

 supposed to have entirely resumed their natural 

 habits. Both of these instances occurred in the 

 Isle of Wight one at Calbourne, where I well 

 remember " old Phil/' as he was called, year after 

 year, sailing over the village-green, and alighting 

 on a low wall at the grocer's shop, from which he 

 used to be fed with bits of cheese, of which he was 

 very fond, and other similar dainties. The other 

 instance was near Sea View, where, I am informed, 

 the gull used to return in the same way, his 

 former tameness not appearing to have been at 

 all affected by his temporary retirement into wild 

 life. Not the least remarkable part of the history 

 of these birds is that, during the breeding-season, 

 each of them occasionally brought his mate with 

 him to introduce her to his old friends, and to 

 invite her to partake of their hospitality. I don't 

 think, indeed, that "old Phil" ever prevailed on 

 his better half to come and share his cheese, but 

 she used to keep him company into the village, 



