234 VERTEBRATE FAUNA OF LAKELAND 



Since Heysham's time, the Grey Lag has continued to be the 

 rarest of the Grey Geese which visit Lakeland. Of course such 

 Geese as were shot in the neighbourhood of the Solway were 

 eaten or sent to distant markets, in most instances, until I came 

 to Cumberland ; not that my exertions have always averted the 

 recurrence of this unfortunate event. But the Messrs. Mann 

 preserved two fine Grey Lags shot near Allonby prior to 1883, 

 and Mr. Coulthard of Blackwell purchased another local specimen 

 in the Carlisle market. Mr. Edward Tandy called my attention 

 to a Grey Lag Goose shot in a field near the Eden at Lang- 

 wathby, on March 29, 1889: this he afterwards presented to 

 me. It was one of a pair, and several others were seen in the 

 neighbourhood by Mr. Tandy and E. Eaine during the early 

 part of the summer. Geese of different species so notoriously 

 linger late in their winter haunts, if not breeding birds, that it 

 would be unsafe to infer that the presence of the Grey Lags in 

 question indicated any desire on their part to nest. But the 

 presence of the Grey Lag in the Lake district at any season of 

 the year is interesting. Mr. A. Smith of Bockliffe, who has 

 probably a better knowledge of the Geese which frequent the 

 Solway salt marshes than any one except Mr. W. Nicol, has 

 on several occasions observed the Grey Lag Goose on Bockliffe 

 marsh, but has very rarely known of a specimen being killed, 

 either by himself or the numerous gunners of the neighbouring 

 villages. In the winter of 1888-89 he observed a gaggle of six 

 Grey Lag Geese frequenting Bockliffe marsh, but they were wild 

 and unapproachable. In the following December Mr. Smith 

 observed a couple of Grey Lag Geese on Bockliffe marsh. On 

 the 8th of that month he was hiding up among some rushes and 

 rough grass at flight time, when, just as the light of the winter 

 afternoon began to wane, he saw two Grey Geese rise off the 

 marsh, and fly noisily to the sand at the water edge ; he thought 

 that they alighted there, and was not a little astonished when, 

 looking up, he saw the two great birds flighting silently over- 

 head. He had number one shot in one barrel, and number six 

 in the other, but, being rather flustered, he fired the barrel con- 

 taining number six, and jumped up as one of the birds fell in a 

 dub of water with a heavy splash. It began to rise, and he 



