A Weather - Wise Bird I heard the other day from a
farmer a detail of weather- - prophecy that was new to me. His farm, though a good 7o miles from the sea—the North Sea—is very popular with the gulls. Most of them are black-headed gulls, the London-loving species, which of course is almost an inland bird. It breeds inland and delights to follow the plough at any time. With these gulls are often a few herring-gull, which, though essentially a sea-coast bird, seems to have a liking for the presence of man. The presence of these two species suggests no inference, but as soon as their company is joined by a lesser black-back or two, then the farmer looks out for squalls. His latest prognostic from their presence was duly fulfilled. Even the Roman augurs were not fonder of taking omens from the birds than our countryfolk. Inland flying-gulls of undistinguished species and the calling and wild flying of rooks are everywhere taken as signals of tempest. I find the following passage in a book on the weather, published presumably before 1881-2, when the gulls first appeared in numbers in St. James's Park : " It is a sure sign of impending rough weather when sea-gulls come up- the Thames and show themselves in the London parks." Presumably London has smooth weather only in the gulls' breeding-season!
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