622 BIRDS OF SOMERSETSHIRE. 



to our southern coast." I have, however, myself 

 found this bird on the still more southern coast of 

 South Devon. Yarrell says it has been shot in 

 Cornwall, and sometimes, but not often, on the coast 

 of Wales. Montagu restricts it more to the coast of 

 Wales, as he says, " It is not frequently seen on our 

 southern coasts : we never remember but one in- 

 stance, and that was in South Wales." These occa- 

 sional visits to the coast of South Wales, however, 

 bring it nearer to our own coast than either Devon 

 or Cornwall. It is not uncommon on the more 

 northern coast of England and Scotland, and breeds 

 in some of the islands off that coast, making its 

 nest on the grassy shelves of the highest precipices. 

 The nest itself is formed of herbage, seldom bulky, 

 generally a mere shallow excavation in the turf, 

 lined with dry grass and the withered tufts of the 

 sea-pink.* 



The food of the Fulmar appears to consist princi- 

 pally of whale-blubber, in order to obtain which 

 these birds follow the whaling vessels for great 

 distances. Yarrell, quoting the Rev. W. Scoresby, 

 says, " These birds follow the whaling ships, joining 

 the ship on its passing the Shetland Islands, and 

 accompanying it to the highest latitude, and keeping 

 an eager watch for anything thrown overboard the 

 smallest particle of fatty substance can scarcely 



* Yarrell, vol. in., p. 639. 



