200 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



(Larus glaucus) maybe delineated as follows : — The 

 bill in the adult state is of a yellowish-white colour, 

 except the inferior angle of the lower mandible, 

 which is reddish-orange ; the irides are of a straw- 

 colour ; all the plumage is nearly white, but there is 

 a tinge of light slaty-blue over the back and wing- 

 coverts ; the legs and feet are of a yellowish-brown 

 tint. The total length is from about 27 in. in some 

 specimens to about 32 in. in others. 



Co-equal in respect of dimensions, robustness of 

 constitution, and imperious demeanour, with the 

 sea-bird described in the preceding lines, the Great 

 Black-backed Gull now comes under review. 

 Whether soaring high above the waveless ocean, or 



desolate solitude of cliffs and headlands, where 

 some mother-bird has planted her nest in apparent 

 security, and assiduously attends to her breeding 

 duties, the gigantic figure of this tyrant gull stalks 

 abroad like a destroying demon, and ruthlessly 

 swooping down upon some of the eggs, consumes 

 them with immense relish. 



In our latitudes, indeed, in low estuaries, or 

 standing upon the muddy banks of some shallow 

 bay far removed from human habitation, this bird 

 may frequently be discerned in the cool, quiet air of 

 the evening. He is surrounded by a company of 

 minor gulls, &c, and appears heedless of prey, and 

 completely immersed in the sedative pleasures of 



illi 



Fig. 111. Great Black-backed Gull (Larus murinvs,. 



skimming nigh unto the billowy waters, the appear- 

 ance and deportment of this magnificent bird claim 

 our highest admiration. Though not nearly so 

 handsome as the Glaucous Gull, yet he is equally 

 endowed with qualities to which the epithet 

 "noble" may be fairly applied. Like that bird, 

 too, his appetite is apparently insatiable, and he 

 perpetually hovers about the localities where in- 

 stinct or experience has taught him to seek what- 

 ever may satisfy his incessant cravings. He is 

 unable to dive, and his swimming apparatus is not 

 of the highest order; but the immense power and 

 sweep of his wings amply compensate for these 

 defects, and suffice to strike terror into the breast 

 of many a minor gull or tern. Away amid the 



quiet contemplation. Perhaps he is reposing after 

 his labours, or mayhap he is placidly awaiting the 

 turn of the tide to yield unto his capacious jaws 

 some dainty morsel of greasy offal, &c, which has 

 floated downwards from the neighbouring city. He 

 seems to have a special predilection for fatty or 

 oily food ; for, when he is out upon the deep, where 

 the carcase of some dead whale or fish lies gleaming 

 in the sun, he is observed to carefully alight thereon, 

 and frequently to absolutely incapacitate himself 

 for further exertion by reason of the immense 

 quantity of carrion he lias consumed. 



The bird we are noticing is found around our 

 coasts throughout the year. It is also frequently 

 noticed on the Irish coast in the vicinity of bays, 



