AND NEIGHBOURHOOD. 237 



my correspondent brought his " Sea Egal " to Lilford; 

 my readers will appreciate my disappointment on 

 discovering that this was nothing more or less than 

 a Common Gull in adult plumage, when I say that, 

 although I had hardly expected to see a Sea-Eagle, 

 I thought that the bird was probably some large and 

 comparatively uncommon Iia])tor^ as I believed that 

 Gulls are generally known in our district as " Molly- 

 mucks " or " CoUymoddies." 



206. HERRING-GULL. 



Larus argentatus. 



A considerable number of this species pass up the 

 Nen in a westerly or south-westerly direction during 

 the months of July, August, and September, but at 

 that season generally maintain a great elevation, and 

 in my experience very seldom alight in our neigh- 

 bourhood. I have constantly observed that these, 

 and indeed almost all Gulls, travel as " near the wind 

 as possible, and often seem to steer straight in the 

 w^ind's eye." A long continuance of strong south- 

 westerly winds, especially in autumn or winter, if 

 accompanied, as is usually the case, by heavy rains 

 and a flood on our meadows, almost invariably brings 

 large flocks of Herring-Gulls up the Nen : on such 

 occasions I have certainly seen hundreds of this 

 species together near Lilford, and my neighbour 

 Mr. G. Hunt of Wadenhoe informed me that in 

 January and February, 1883, some thousands fre- 

 quented the meadows between Thrapston and Oundle 

 for several weeks, finding ample sustenance on the 

 earth-worms drowned out by a long flood. This is 



