noble: the resident birds of Guadeloupe. 3G7 



species is a resident. The bird seeks out the lowland streams which 

 are not too overgrown with foliage. In such regions it is common. 



8. Larus atricilla atricilla Linne. 

 Mauve a Tete Noir. 



A few birds observed near Goyave, the latter part of August, but 

 no specimens taken until September 16th at the island of St. Croix. 



A comparison of a fair series of Laughing Gulls from the Lesser 

 Antilles, Greater Antilles, and Bahamas with a large series from the 

 mainland of North America shows conclusively that the island birds 

 are smaller than the mainland ones. No color difference is apparent 

 but the decided difference in size warrants the referring of the Laugh- 

 ing Gulls inhabiting the coast of North America, to a distinct race^ 

 which may be known as Lams atricilla megahpterus (Bruch). 



Although there is some uncertainty as to the priority of this name, 

 it seems most probable that Bruch (Journ. f. ornith., 1855, p. 287) 

 was the first to describe the North American Laughing Gull. Linne's 

 description was based upon Catesby (Nat. hist. Carol., 1733, 1, p. 89) 

 and Catesby only mentions the Bahaman bird. It seems probable 

 that Bruch when describing .4. catesby i and A. micropterus was dis- 

 cussing the Bahaman bird. To be sure Bruch quotes Bonaparte as 

 the authority for these names but when Bonaparte a year later (Comp. 

 rend. Acad, sci., 1856, 42, p. 771) published upon the birds he gave 

 Bruch as the authority. In setting up Atricilla as a generic name 

 Bruch was compelled by the custom of the time to use a new name 

 for Larus atricilla Linne, to avoid duplicating names. Atricilla 

 cateshyi refers, tJien, to the bird of Linne, in other words to the Ba- 

 haman-Antillean race. The next bird described by Bruch was A. 

 megahpterus and although the description (Bruch, Loc. cit., p. 287) is 

 not good, he gives the type-locality as "Peru und der Mexicanische 

 Meerbusen." It is at least conservative to refer this name to the 

 North American race. The name A. micropterus cannot refer to this 

 race because Bruch {Ibid, p. 287) gave it to a species smaller than 

 A. catesbyi, in other words smaller than the Bahaman- Antillean race. 



The difference in size between L. a. atricilla and L. a. megahpterus 

 is shown in the following table. 



