THE BIRDS OF AN EASTERN 

 VOYAGE 



The monotony of the long voyage to India is 

 rendered a good deal less oppressive if one 

 knows and takes an interest in the various 

 sea-fowl which from time to time present them- 

 selves to the view of the passenger on one of 

 our great liners, and the observation of these 

 suggests problems of no small interest. Take, 

 for instance, the distribution of the various 

 species of gulls. These birds are much alike 

 in their habits, and yet some of them are 

 strangely localised, while others have an 

 enormous range over both cold and warm 

 seas. The lesser black-backed gull of our 

 coasts may be met anywhere, from " the 

 channel's chops " to Aden, but the very 

 similar herring-gull is largely replaced in the 

 Mediterranean by the yellow-legged herring- 

 gull (Larus cachinnans) ; indeed, this is the 

 only herring-gull I have ever identified in this 

 sea in the course of several voyages out and 

 home. 



It is a far more beautiful bird, with its 

 234 



