scene we were glad to beat a speedy retreat and chase 

 any young Shag that might have taken to the sea, and 

 be unable to fly, with a view to capturing him alive — an 

 attempt that, in my experience, was invariably a failure, 

 for although we could often have killed these youngsters, 

 had we been so-minded, with oars or boat-hook, they 

 always managed to dive and conceal themselves amongst 

 the boulder stones and sea-weed at the foot of the rocks. 

 I have occasionally, but rarely, found an isolated pair of 

 Shags that had made their nest on an open ledge of 

 cliff (I am writing exclusively of my Mediterranean 

 experience) ; as a rule, we found these birds nesting in 

 large caverns or in adjoining crevices in the face of the 

 cliffs in considerable colonies. I need hardly say that 

 the Shag is a splendid diver, a very fast swimmer, and, 

 considering his build, a quick and active flyer. It is 

 a somewhat remarkable fact that although, as I have 

 already stated, this species is not common on the 

 eastern coast of England, few autumns pass by in which 

 I do not hear of one or more occurrences in our inland 

 county of Northamptonshire ; this is the more surprising 

 for the reason that although the Common Cormorant 

 often frequents inland waters, the habits of the Shag 

 are almost exclusively maritime. The crest is said to 

 be assumed in spring and to drop off during the 

 breeding-season in April and May, but there is no rule 

 without an exception : I never saw a Shag in the 

 Mediterranean with a crest at any season of the year; 

 I shot a few on the coast of Cornwall in August with 

 some crest-feathers still remaining, and a bird of this 



