186 WILD LIFE ON A NORFOLK ESTUARY 



They delight to fly in airy troupes up and down the channel 

 when the tide is rising, dipping lightly, toe-deep, into the flood 

 for floating fragments, and tiny fish and various crustaceans 

 thrown out of the shrimp-boats by the shrimpers from amid 

 last night's catches. If it be low water they prowl about by 

 the channel sides, or hunt in the " lows " left on the flats, for 

 living prey. It is odd to see them step into these pools, at 

 most an inch or two deep, lift up their tails, and with heads 

 drawn in, and looking downwards, taking stock of the 

 shrimps and gobies left there, and which scuttle around seek- 

 ing shelter, or plunge into the soft ooze for safety. Now a 

 ditch prawn, then a Gammarus, and now again a "whitebait" 

 fails to evade those red mandibles ; those in hiding remain 

 there ; but the black-head has learned a trick or two, and he 

 begins literally to dance, his bright red feet pattering on the 

 mud with the speed of clockwork. This is too much even 

 for a goby's love of hiding, and out it bolts to seek some 

 other cover, but is snapped up on its way. It is an exceed- 

 ingly pretty sight to see a large company of these dainty 

 Laridtz dancing for a breakfast ! 



Quite a number of greater black-backed gulls, free this 

 year of nesting duties, stay with us all summer through. 

 In late autumn their numbers are increased by the arrival 

 of wanderers down the coast, who are following the inshor- 

 ing herring-shoals ; and they now divide their day between 

 Breydon and the fishing grounds. In fine weather great 

 triangular flocks fly seawards to spend the night among the 

 fishing fleet, and glean up a rich repast by sharing the 

 spoils with the often irate fishermen, from whose nets they 

 pilfer with great audacity. There is a large mustering, at 

 nearly all hours of the day, around the harbour mouth, from 

 October until the beginning of December. These seem to 

 me to be gulls that trouble Breydon very little, for when 

 replete with dead herrings they have snatched from the 

 breakers, they will rest for hours upon the sea in a long 

 straggling line, often a mile in length ; and often they are 

 seen asleep there until towards evening, when they fly away 

 northward, probably to spend the night on the Wells 

 marshes, returning at daybreak in low-flying flocks. Then, 

 too, at various times of the year, parties of gulls, tabooing 

 Breydon, resort in the daytime to the fields, and pass over 



