LARID.E. 553 



FAMILY YI. 



Larid.e. - The Gulls. 



Gen. Charac. — Bill of various forms, more or less straight and compressed 

 on the sides ; the nostrils lateral, generally longitudinal, and sub-medial ; 

 the wings lengthened and pointed ; the tail more or less long and of various 

 forms; the tarsi generally moderate, strong, and covered in front with 

 transverse scales ; the toes moderate, with the anterior ones united hy a 

 full web, the hind toe usually short and elevated. 



In this family, of wliicli our Sea-gulls furnish 

 well-known and cliaracteristic examples, the wings 

 are well developed, and the birds possess consider- 

 able powers of flight. The bill is variable in its 

 form, but generally rather elongated and com- 

 pressed, — not furnished with a distinct tip, as in 

 the Procellarida? ; while the nostrils form linear 

 or oval slits in the sides of the upper mandible, 

 without any trace of tubular structure. The feet, 

 which are placed moderately forward, so as to 

 enable the bird to walk with ease, are generally 

 small ; the three anterior toes are well united by 

 a complete web, and the hinder toe is small, and 

 raised above the level of the rest. 



The Sea-gulls are very generally distributed, and 

 numerous in most parts of the world, but are most 

 abundant in the northern and southern latitudes. 

 They fly well, and float very lightly and buoyantly 

 over the surface of the waves, but do not swim 

 much, and are incapable of diving\ They are ge- 

 nerally noisy, screaming birds, living together in 

 considerable flocks. Their food consists chiefly of 

 fishes, but they by no means confine themselves to 

 this diet ; indeed. Sea- Gulls feed upon all kinds of 

 animal matter thrown up by the tide or discovered 

 floating on the surface of the ocean ; thus fulfllling 

 the same duty on the shores of the sea as the 

 Carrion Crow does in the interior of the country. 

 No substance is too putrid to afford them a meal. 



