210 BIRD-LIFE IN A SOUTHERN COUNTY. 



ledges and in nooks and fissures in all parts 

 of the cliffs. Some are placed on the downs 

 quite easy of access, but these are in almost 

 every case significantly empty. When disturbed, 

 the birds rise in a fluttering throng, persistently 

 uttering their monotonous notes, and the excite- 

 ment continues as long as human intruders 

 remain. These birds become much more bold 

 and noisy when the young are hatched. We 

 have often / concealed ourselves under the thorn 

 and bramble which in some places overgrows 

 the cliffs, and watched the actions of these 

 Gulls when their young have been on the ledges 

 in the vicinity. For hours at a time the parents 

 of the young we were nearest to have circled 

 above us, every now and then swooping past the 

 face of the cliff, and occasionally almost brushing 

 our head with their wings, all the time uttering 

 their noisy clamour. By the aid of a field-glass, 

 many charming peeps at this Gull's domestic 

 arrangements may be obtained along the cliffs 

 in this particular locality. Early in the season 

 the brooding birds may be watched sitting here 

 and there upon their nests. These for the most 

 part are flimsy structures, mere hollows lined 



