Page 38 - Animals of the Sakhalin Region in myths and legends

Long ago, people lived near the water. And far away from them
lived a large family of seagulls on a rocky island. These were
beautiful birds that could soar in the air for a very long time. But
as soon as people approached the rocks, the seagulls screamed and
swore, attacked people in order to scare them.
And a family of kukhs lived nearby in a spruce forest. They never

made noise and greeted people passing by.
When people got fish from their nets, the kukshi, flying from tree
to tree, whistled softly, congratulating them on their big catch.
People smiled in response and threw them a piece of liver or caviar,
and the kukshi carefully picked up food and quietly flew away.
Seagulls behaved in a completely different way. At the sight of a
fish, they flew up and shouted that the fish belonged only to them.

People tried to appease the birds and share fish with them. But as
soon as it was done, a bunch of seagulls flew off and fought for
each piece. After this behavior, people stopped feeding the seagulls.
Since then, seagulls have only gotten lumps floating on the
surface of the water. Seagulls are beautiful birds, but people know
what they really are.

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