BREYDON GULLS AND BREYDON CRABS 189 



was to go to Caister in the early morning, and, getting under 

 the lee of the sandhills, dig a hole and hide himself, shooting 

 the birds as they came in from the sea " to go for their early 

 morning feed on the land." Of course, Breydon was 

 frequented at intervals in order to make up his consign- 

 ments. 



He once shot a small gull on Breydon in very hard 

 weather, and waited for the tide to bring it to the edge of 

 the rond. Before the bird floated within reach a grey gull 

 stooped and snatched up the little victim, and flew towards 

 the flats with it, where he immediately started to pull it in 

 pieces and to devour it. A heron, equally sharp-set, dashed 

 at the larger gull and attempted to share in the spoils, but 

 after a rough-and-tumble scrimmage was driven off by the 

 original thief. 



It was Hurr who, up the North River, shot a large gull 

 that had just come in from sea, with its breakfast snatched 

 from the herring nets, and which, on falling mortally 

 wounded, disgorged no less than eleven herrings. In truth 

 an avine glutton ! 



One now and again sees a gull from whose mouth a piece 

 of cord is depending ; in all probability it is kept there by a 

 fish-hook fast in its gullet. Such a one remained in the 

 neighbourhood of Breydon for many weeks. 



A gull was shot on one occasion, and on going to pick it 

 up the gunner saw what he thought to be a piece of cord 

 hanging from its mouth ; on pulling it out it was found to be 

 a rat's tail, with the freshly killed rat attached to the other 

 end of it ! 



"October 12th, 1906. Strolling along the seashore this 

 morning, I was much interested in watching the steam 

 drifters coming home from the fishing grounds. One boat in 

 particular caught my attention by the enormous number of 

 gulls flying around it, which, through my binoculars, looked 

 like a swarm of bees buzzing around a hive. Although the 

 boat was going at full speed, the birds flew round and round 

 it, apparently without effort, stopping at intervals to squabble 

 for broken herrings thrown over by the fishermen, who were 

 shaking and emptying their nets as the boat sped home- 

 wards, and catching up again with their companions with 

 the greatest ease imaginable." 



" October i$th y 1906. There must have been 4000 gulls on 



