1188 PHALACROCORAX CARBO. 



of seeing the Cormorant using its wings in this manner, by which it kept ahead of the boat, which was going as 

 fast as one man could row it. It sallies out early in the morning, and commences to fish at once; and in the 

 summer may he seen digesting its food, resorting to favourite and safe perches on isolated rocks, as early 

 as seven o'clock. At this time, when gorged with fish to such an extent that locomotion is a somewhat 

 arduous matter with it, it may be approached more nearly than at other times. It sits resting on its tail, 

 which is always used for that purpose, with its head drawn in, and every now and then extends its neck 

 suddenly, in order to force the' fish further down its gullet. After having been at rest for some time, it 

 stretches out its wiugs, and keeps them extended until they are dried. In the afternoon it commences to 

 fish again, and before retiring for the night to its accustomed roosting-place makes a very heavy meal. One 

 which I saw killed on the Welsh coast at sundown disgorged five rock-perch, two of them weighing half a 

 pound, a fair-sized eel, and a young salmon. I have myself taken gurnet 8 inches long from their throats, 

 and have known a Cormorant (which was shot in the act) at Craig y dern to pursue a salmon of about 3 lbs. 

 in weight. Some idea of the enormous quantity of fish which must be consumed by a large colony of these birds 

 may be arrived at by taking their number at 100 pairs, and assuming at the very lowest that each bird takes 

 4 lbs. of fish in a day ; this will give, as the prey of 200 birds, 800 lbs. in a day, or more than 122 tons in the 

 year. "Were it not for the wonderful digestive powers of this Cormorant, it could not dispose of such quan- 

 tities of food; but so rapid is the process of digestion, that fish when only just passed into the upper part 

 of the proventriculus, or the portion of the stomach just beneath the " crop," are found broken up into small 

 pieces by the action of the gastric juice. 



Besides acting as a prop for the bird when sitting upright on a rock or ledge of a cliff, the rigid tail of 

 the Cormorant serves the purpose of a powerful lever in the water, enabling the bird to ascend or descend in 

 deep water by a stroke upward or downward, as required. The Cormorant perches with its bill pointed 

 upwards, and when watching the approach of its enemy, man, twists its neck from side to side, looking over 

 its back in an awkward manner ; on flying off from such a situation it proceeds easily, taking quick strong 

 flaps ; and soon the momentum of its heavy body carries it forward with great speed ; its neck is carried 

 stretched out as a rule, particularly when flying along the water or before alighting on a rock, but not un- 

 frequentlv, when descending from an altitude to a fishing-ground, it draws back its head, like a Heron. From 

 the water it rises with difficulty, flapping along for some distance before it can mount into the air. Normally 

 it is quite a silent bird, but in the breeding-season has a variety of notes, which I will presently notice. 

 Cormorants roost always in the same place, and may be shot by watching beneath the cliffs to which they fly 

 at sundown, coming in from all directions, and keeping usually at a considerable height. The immature birds 

 are to be found at these localities while the adults are away at their breeding-colonies. In former days these 

 birds used to be kept in England for fishing-purposes ; and an instance of a royal Cormorant-fancier is to be 

 had in Charles I., who, Sir Thomas Browne tells us, was supplied from the tree breeding-place at Reedham, 

 in Norfolk. In China they are still used by the inhabitants for fishing ; a ring is placed round the neck to 

 prevent the fish being swallowed ; but when a sufficient quantity have been caught, the ring is removed and 

 the bird allowed to fish for itself. Pere David, who refers to these birds being so tamed iu China, says that 

 the Chiuese breed them in captivity, hatching the eggs under hens. In countries where the Cormorant is not 

 molested it becomes very tame. Prjevalsky speaks of it as such in Mongolia. In most regions, however, it 

 is a very shy bird, as it is so much persecuted on account of its poaching tendencies ; indeed it is one of the 

 few birds not included in England under that most praiseworthy enactment, the " Sea-fowl Preservation Act." 

 In order to enable it to seize large fish the Cormorant is possessed of great strength of bill, and inflicts a serious 

 injury if, when wounded, it contrives to seize the hand with its sharp mandibles ; its assault is aggravated by 

 its always shaking whatever it has hold of, just like a terrier shakes a rat. In this way I have known it pierce 

 a man's hand to the bone. It is worthy of remark that in the autumn it is often infested with ticks, which 

 fasten on its head and neck. 



I conclude this notice of the habits of the Cormorant with an extract from Dr. Saxby's excellent account, 

 in the ' Birds of Shetland/ of the behaviour of a tame example, and which I take from Mr. Dresser's work. 

 After speaking of the extreme docility and remarkable amount of intelligence displayed hy his pet, he proceeds 

 to speak of his voracity, remarking that when " Ducks were fed he would rush boldly in among them and 

 appropriate any thing in the shape of fish or flesh that happened to suit his fancy ; but he never would eat 



