beyond the reach of the gun. While in our harbours or rivers it sails at
a moderate height, sometimes mingling with the Silvery Gull, or even
with the Great Black-backed. Its movements are graceful and easy, and
it floats as it were in the air, whether proceeding in a direct line, or in
irregular curves, when, suddenly checking its speed, it partially closes its
wings, and descends with rapidity in a spiral manner. As it approachesthe
water, it allows its legs to hang, opens its bill, and while seizing its
food, raises its wings erect and flaps them quickly to support its body.
Now with loaded bill it sweeps off to some distance, alights, and devours
its prey.
When in pursuit of a shoal of small fish, it assembles in flocks, keeps
up a constant yelping noise, dips every instant among the fry, and continues
to feed until so gorged as to be unable to fly. Alighting in groups,
they float with great buoyancy, and it is pleasant to see them rising and
falling alternately on the waves of a moderately agitated sea, the snowy
whiteness of their under parts contrasting with the deep green water, and
their elongated wings extending beyond the tail, giving the appearance
of lightness and agility to their form.
The flight of this species is light and long sustained, and the circumstance
of birds of this genus being able to find food almost anywhere, induces
them at times to proceed far out to sea ; and I have now and then
been gratified by the sudden appearance of several birds of the present
species to the lee of the ship, on whose deck I was with impatience
watching for the sight of land. The winged pilgrims would no sooner
come up than they also would express their pleasure by their cries, especially
when they received from the passengers bits of bread or such garbage
as might be at hand. Once fed, they would fly about us the whole
day, and sometimes would be seen the next; and then perhaps all at
once, as if made aware of the existence of land in a particular direction,
they would fly off, and we would see no more of them.
When spring has fairly commenced, our Common Gulls assemble in
> " ' stew ;)»BI<T plodfr
parties of hundreds, and alight on mud flats or sandy beaches, in our
eastern estuaries and bays. For a while they regularly resort to these
places, which to the Gulls are what the scratching or tooting grounds are
to the Pinnated Grous. The male Gulls, however, although somewhat pugnacious,
are not very inveterate in their quarrels, making up by clamour
for the deficiency of prowess in their tournaments. The males bow to
the females with swollen throats, and walk round them with many odd
gesticulations. As soon as the birds are paired, they give up their animosities,
and for the rest of the season live together on the best terms.
After a few weeks spent in these preparatory pleasures, the flocks take to
wing, and betake themselves to their breeding places.
On an island within a few miles of Eastport in Maine, I found these
birds breeding in great numbers in the beginning of May. Their nests
were there placed amid the scanty tufts of grass. On the Gannet Rock,
early in June, they were breeding on the shelves towards the summit,
along with the Guillemots, while the Kittiwakes had secured their nests
far below. The different species kept apart, but yet exhibited no antipathy
towards each other. On the 18th of July, we discovered a low
rocky island at the bottom of a bay ten miles from the open sea, opposite
the harbour of Little Macatina, on the coast of Labrador, where we found
upwards of two hundred nests, all containing eggs with the chicks more
or less advanced. The number of eggs in each nest was three or four,
more generally three. They resembled those of the Great Black-backed
Gull in form and colour, but were much smaller, measuring two inches
and three quarters in length, by one and five and a half eighths in their
greatest diameter. There was considerable diversity both in the tint
of their ground colour, and in the number and size of the spots on
them, as is the case with the eggs of most water birds. In general,
however, they were of a dull dark cream-colour, thickly blotched, sprinkled
and touched with different shades of purple, umber, and black. AVhen
fresh, these eggs are delicious food, as I have had abundant occasion
to know. The nests were in this place all situated on the bare rock,
but in all other respects resembled those found among the grass or on
more elevated rocks ; they were formed of seaweeds, well constructed,
about six inches across within, and twelve in their greatest diameter.
Some of the nests were much thicker and larger than others;
many were placed within the distance of a foot from each other; and the
whole place was covered with feathers and dung, which emitted a very
disagreeable stench, proving to us that it was annually resorted to by
these birds. To our surprise the birds were very shy. Among those
killed by us were some having all the appearance of mature age, such as
I have mentioned above. The number of individuals among them having
the black ring on the bill was much greater than among those found
near Grand Manan; some, however, were without this ring, and on
others it was but partially marked. Some had no white on the tips of the