204 MORGAN — Some Observations on Cormorants. 



ral dead ones in similar situations. The note of the young 

 birds is a sibilant squawk, feeble by itself, but when some 

 thousands of birds are uttering it at the same time the volume 

 of sound is considerable. The old birds make no sound at 

 all when flying over, but when a silver gull or a crow becomes 

 too inquisitive they utter a hoarse grunting sound. When 

 the adults or well-grown young get angry or afraid they half 

 open the bill, partly extend the rami of the lower jaw, and 

 keep the pouch and skin of the neck in a quiver. 



The newly hatched chick is quite naked, of a greenish 

 black colour above, and reddish black below. The eyes are 

 closed. 



Quarter grown young have the head naked, all the upper 

 parts and wings covered with scanty black down, and the 

 under parts with scanty white down; iris, dull brown. 



Half grown birds have the forehead and crown of the 

 head bare and of a light greenish black colour; iris, dull 

 brown; pouch and bill, dull greenish yellow; neck and breast, 

 white. The dome of neck in these two stages tea much stained 

 from putting the head down the parents gullet when feeding. 



The fully grown nestling has the under parts of the neck 

 and breast covered with white down, the upper parts and 

 wings, dull black; iris, dull brown; beak, pouch, and bare parts 

 •of the face, pale dull yellow. 



First stage out of the nest. Beak and soft parts of head, 

 pale yellow; chin, neck, and upper part of breast, strongly 

 mottled with black; abdomen, less mottled; iris, dull brown. 



Second stage. Chin, white; middle of neck and upper 

 part of breast, mottled with black; iris and soft parts as in 

 first stage. 



Third stage. Upper part of breast and abdomen, spar^ 

 ingly spotted with black; iris and soft part as in first stage. 



Fourth Stage. Beak more greenish, culmen, dark brown 

 colour; iris, dull brown, or brown with a grey margin, or all 

 grey; bare part of face, dull yellow; abdomen, with a few black 

 spots. 



Fifth Stage. Ready to fly; all the under parts, white; 

 wings and upper parts, dull black; iris, grey; bill and bare 

 parts as in 4th stage. 



The grey of the iris taking the place of the brown is pro- 

 bably the prelude to the sea green of the adult, but none of 

 the birds we were able to capture had yet attained to that 

 stage. 



