CH. 1.] HABITS OF TAME GULLS. 157 
which had been caught young, and tamed, have 
continued to keep up their intimacy with those 
who reared them, after they had gained the full 
use of their wings and were at perfect liberty ; 
though they took advantage of it to go away every 
year at the breeding-season, and might have been 
supposed to have entirely resumed their natural 
habits. Both of these instances occurred in the 
Isle of Wight—one at Calbourne, where I well 
remember “old Phil,” as he was called, year after 
year, sailing over the village-green, and alighting 
on a low wall at the grocer’s shop, from which he 
used to be fed with bits of cheese, of which he was 
very fond, and other similar dainties. The other 
instance was near Sea View, where, I am informed, 
the gull used to return in the same way, his 
former tameness not appearing to have been at 
all affected by his temporary retirement into wild 
life. Not the least remarkable part of the history 
of these birds is that, during the breeding-season, 
each of them occasionally brought his mate with 
him to introduce her to his old friends, and to 
invite her to partake of their hospitality. I don’t 
think, indeed, that “old Phil” ever prevailed on 
his better half to come and share his cheese, but 
she used to keep him company into the village, 
