COMMON GUILLEMOT. 
457 
the Guillemots, the razor-bills, and the puffins next above 
them; and high over all the greater and lesser black- 
backed and herring gulls. The multitudes passing around 
you in their busy flight, in strong contrast to each other, 
—from the slow, majestic, eagle-like soar of the greater 
black-backed gull, to the rapid, short-winged, bustling 
flight of the puffin—the various mingled cries of the 
different species—the loud bark of the greater black- 
backed gull—the distinctty repeated cry which has given 
its name to the kittiwake—and occasionally, as some¬ 
thing unusual seemed to pervade the dense rows of Guil¬ 
lemots, a loud, hoarse murmur, like the cheering of some 
distant multitude, together with the constant motion of 
the freshening sea, and the loud beating of the surge 
against the rocks—all contributed to render this one of 
the finest scenes in nature. 
Whilst upon its egg, the Guillemot, which well merits 
the name of foolish, will remain so stupidly seated as to 
allow a noose at the end of a long stick to be passed 
around its neck, by which means immense numbers of 
them are annually taken by the inhabitants of St. Kilda, 
who subsist almost entirely on sea-birds. 
The Guillemot lays one egg only, towards the end of 
May or beginning of June; the ordinary egg is ama¬ 
zingly large in comparison with the size of the bird; 
I have, however, seen one which far exceeds those of 
the plate in its capacity: it measures in length, over 
the surface of the egg, five inches, and in circumfer¬ 
ence seven inches and a quarter, or one inch and an 
emlit more than common. The size of the Guillemot's 
O 
egg is most striking when compared with that of other 
birds, and yet almost insignificant in its proportions now 
that Mr. Wolley has made us acquainted with the eggs of 
the jack snipe. 
