Shetland, is bold and clamorous, giving loud warnings when
danger approaches. I t is found in Scandinavia-, at the Faroe
Islands, in Iceland, and by our Arctic voyagers in Greenland
and Melville Island. Mr. A udubon mentions it as plentiful
in North America.
This species is observed all the year on the coasts of Holland
"and France; both old and young are-also observed at
Genoa in winter. Dr. Heineken includes it in his catalogue
of the Birds of Madeira ; and M. Savi in his Birds of Italy;
Mr. G. H. Strickland mentions, that Herring Gulls frequent
the Golden Horn at Constantinople, where they are so tame
that they may be easily struck with an oar. This spècies has
also been found in Asia Minor; and on the southern shores
of the Black Sea.
The adult bird in summer has the bill yellow, the angle
of the under mandible red ; edges of the .eyelids orange, the
irides straw yellow ; head and neck all round pure white ;
the back, and all the wing-coverts uniform delicate French
grey; tertials tipped with white; primaries:.’mostly black,
but grey on the basal portion of thevdnner web ; 'the first
primary with a triangular patch of .white afc^the end,, the.
second and. third with smaller portions of white ; upper tail-
coverts and tail-feathers pure white ; chinj throat, -breast,
belly, and all the under surface of the • body and tail pure
white ; legs and feet flesh-colour. The whole length from
twenty-two inches to twenty-four and a half, depending upon
age and sex ; the wing from sixteen inches and a half to
seventeen and a quarter. In winter, the adult birds have the
head streaked with dusky grey, Youqg. birds resemble the
young of the Lesser Black-backed Gull, but the legs and
feet are more livid in colour.
NATATORES. LARIDÆ.
T H E GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL.
Larus marimtSj Great Blach-backed Gull,JPenn. Brit. Zool. vpl. ii. p. 172,
^ *“, ’t Most. Ornith. Diet.
,, „ ,, „ „ Bewick, Brit. Birds, vol.ii. p.223.
j , i, noevius, The Wagel% ^ ,, , ,, 225, young.
. marinus, Black-backed, Gull, Flem. Brit. An. p. 140.
ÇM■" j Omith. vol. ii. p. 507.
jjgfl ,, ,, Jeny n s , Brit, Ifert. p. 278.
,• U, Gould, Birds of Europe, pt, xiii,
,) Goéland à manteau noir, Temm. Man. d’Ôrnith. vol.ii.-p. 76Ô.
T he G reat B lack-backed Gull, though seen throughout
the* year on various parts of our coast, is not numerous as