484 



Voice. The soft murmuring note is rather peculiar and 

 not unmusical ; it may be heard in a broken chorus at the 

 breeding-stations. The piteous cry of the young is two- 

 syllabled and sounds like willock-willocJc. 



Food. In autumn, between August and October, the 

 adults, accompanied by their offspring, may be seen scattered 

 over the sea at no great distance from the coast, following 

 the ' schools ' of small fishes upon which they mainly 



FIG. 58. COMMON GUILLEMOT. 



subsist. Crabs are also taken in minor quantities. In 

 November but few Guillemots are seen fishing near our 

 shores, and by December the birds are probably scattered 

 far and wide over the boundless main. 



Nest. Guillemots assemble on the cliffs much about the 

 same time of year as Razorbills. Along the southern coasts 

 of the British Isles they may appear as early as the first 

 week in February ; in the more northern districts they do 

 not land at their rocky homes until a month or so later. 



