St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1897-05-22
ENGLISH SEA GuLLs.
Something Assout These Most Intcrs
cstsng of birds.

L
| The gulls breed in marshy places
sometimes at considerable, distancs
| from the sea, returning to the coast al
soon as the duties of incubation an
over and reappearing in the following
spring. During the breeding season
| they become, to all intents and pur
poses, birds of the country, rot only II
| their habitat, but in their habits, a1fd
| are to be reckoned in no small degree
| among the farmers friends. The mum
| ber Of their breeding places in Britain
| has diminished considerably within his.
toric times. Sir Thomas Browne tells
us that in his day these birds were in
such plenty about Horsey that s'the
country people sometimes brought
them in carts to Norwich and sold them
at small rates and made use of theil
eggs in puddings."
L The colony of Horsey was dispersed
early in the century and the cattle Craze
ON its excellent pasture land which had
been formed by the draining of the
marshes. The colony did not in body
seek a fresh breeding place, but spread
themselves in small parties over the
broads. Some came to nest at Rollesby
for q few seasons, but the erection there
of the Yarmouth waterworks, tits said
disturbed them and eventually drove
them away.
Of all the then new colonies the most
successful had been that at Hoveton, not
far from Wroyham, the well-known
yachting center, where they bred inter.
mittently till 1854, when as many as &c
nests were hatehed off. From that date
the colony may be said to have settled
there permanently and they have been
consistently protected. Some, doubt,
less, wealt to the noted breeding place
at Seoulton mere, probably the largest
in the kingdom-known, like the van
ished one at Horsey, to Sir Thomas
Browne, who when treating of these
birds wrote TO Merritt that s'great
plenty thereof have bred about Seoul.
ton mere and from thence sent to Lon.
don" And at this place they have bred
from time inmemorial.
The village of Scoulton lies on the
high road between Walton and Nor
wich, and not far from the village is the
famous mere, some two miles round,
in the middle of which is large
swampy island, with thick growth OF
spear grass and reeds and bearing a
few willows. About the middle of Feb
ruary the birds begin to come in and
the stream of immigration continues
for about three weeks, when the nesting
commences. Not that nest, in the Or
dinary sense of the word, is always
built-at any rate at Scoulton-for the
eggs are sometimes deposited in hol-
low on the ground. Generally, however,
there is some kind of nest Of sedges.
rood tops and withered grass. The
birds begin to lay in April, If the
weather is mild and as soon as they have
fairly settled down the eggs are gath
cred for the market and sometimes as
many as 1000 have been taken in one
day. When the birds are in full laying
and have been left from Friday until
Monday undisturbed, over 5000 eggs
have been collected. No more than
three are laid the first time, though If
these are taken the birds will lay again;
but in the second and third clutch there
are rarely more than two.
During the breeding season the birds
spread over the country in search of
food, following the plow, picking up
grubs and worms turned up by the
share. One is glad to know that the
farmers have remembered their feath-
cred friends. Lubbock, in his Fauna
of Norfolk says that now and them
year of jubilee is given, when no eggs
are taken, and that on one occasion the
eggs were spared at the instance of the
neighboring farmers, who justly valued
the services of these birds in the de-
struction of grubs, etc. AS soon as the
young birds can fly the colony breaks
up and its members depart for the coast,
where, as rule, they spend the autumn
and winter. BY the middle of August
the gulls have left their breeding place,
TO return no more till the following sea-
son.-London Telegraph.