THE CORMORANT AND ITS NEST. IO3 



ern Maine at the end of April. The next day a white- 

 faced wasp (^Vespa maculatd) flew aboard the vessel. 

 The day was spent in searching for eider nests, of which 

 I found a dozen in the " tucking-bush," with thirty eggs, 

 and the rude nests and eggs of the saddle-back gull. 



June 1 6th was a beautiful day, rather warm, with light 

 winds" from the east and south, or quite calm. In the 

 afternoon a shower passed over from the west, and at night 

 the wind was northerly ; the southwest summer winds had 

 not yet set in, the prevailing winds being northerly. We 

 . spent the day in a search for the eggs of the " waupigan " 

 or common cormorant, and those of the shag or double- 

 crested cormorant ; William, a very intelligent French 

 Canadian, taking us to their nesting-place in his row-boat. 

 The nests were situated on a high cliff, a sort of shelf. 

 We let William down over the precipice with a rope. 

 There were fifty-five nests in all, and over them rose 

 flocks of cormorants disturbed at our coming ; they were 

 very shy and flew rapidly far off, wheeling about in cir- 

 cles, but not daring to come near the nesting-place. 

 There were five eggs in a nest ; the latter were about 

 20 inches in outside diameter, built of thick birch limbs, 

 whitened, as was the rocky shelf, with the excrement of 

 the birds, and the entire neighborhood was pervaded 

 with a far-reaching and intolerable stench of decaying 

 fish. The eggs of the common cormorant are said to be 

 laid earlier in the season than those of any other bird ; 

 they are long, pointed, and of a dirty tea-color, some 

 nearly white. The shags' nests, mixed with those of the 

 waupigan, were situated in another place adjoining. 

 They are usually laid on the bare rock, and William was 

 surprised to find them on the precipice. The eggs are 



