COMMON GUILLEMOT 349 



meet again after a separation of a few hours, there is a great deal ol 

 noise. They utter a hoarse, long-drawn cry, like the beginning of 

 a dog's howl before he has cleared his voice ; also a succession of 

 laughter-like notes, and other sounds resembling the cries, guttural 

 and clear, of the black-headed gull ; and, sometimes, short, barking 

 notes like those of geese and sheldrakes. 



Like most short-winged, heavy-bodied birds, they fly straight to 

 their point, rushing violently through the air with rapidly-beating 

 wings. It is amusing to watch a bird flying in from the sea, and 

 attempting to alight on a ledge of rock already crowded ; one or two 

 birds at the spot the new-comer attempts to drop on threaten to 

 strike with their beaks. This demonstration prevents him from 

 coming down among them ; and, being incapable of gliding off to 

 one side to drop on to some other spot, or of suspending himself in 

 the air for a few moments, he is compelled to drop down without 

 touching the ledge, sweep round, and go straight out to sea again, 

 and after flying a distance of three or four hundred yards, or farther, 

 to circle round and come back to the ledge a second time. The 

 frustrated bird is often seen to fly right away out of sight. 



The single egg of the guillemot is deposited on the naked rock, 

 without any nest, often dangerously near the edge. The sitting- 

 birds are very careful when leaving the rock to push the eggs from 

 under them ; but when suddenly startled, as by the report of a gun 

 fired from a ship or boat for the amusement of cockney excursionists, 

 the eggs may be thrown off the ledge, and in some instances have 

 been seen to fall in a shower down the cliff- side. The guillemot 

 lays a handsome pear-shaped egg, very large for the bird. No other 

 bird lays eggs so various in colour ; so greatly do they vary that 

 two eggs cannot be found quite alike, even among hundreds. The 

 ground-colour in different specimens is white, cream, stone-colour, 

 pale blue, reddish, and many shades of green, from a strong, bright 

 green to olive-green. The egg is spotted and blotched with brown, 

 black, and deep red, and grey. The guillemot when incubating does 

 not lie on its egg like most birds, but stands with the egg between 

 its legs, which are placed very far back, as in all auks, divers, and 

 grebes. It is a pretty and amusing sight to watch the guillemot, 

 when returning to her egg after a short absence, walk on to it, and 

 adjust and readjust it a score of times, using her beak and chin for 

 the purpose, before she is satisfied that it is effectually covered. 

 Incubation lasts a month, and only one young bird is reared in the 

 season ; if the first egg is taken she will lay a second, and sometimes 



