LARID^. 



557 



uiidiilatiiig waves of the ocean ; it is capable of sustaining 

 a long and continued flight, and while constantly wan- 

 dering over the surface of the water, or searching along 

 the coast with every rising and receding tide, it seldom 

 fails to find a plentiful supply of materials for the grati- 

 fication of its omnivorous appetite. 



The Black-backed Gulls build their nests on inac- 

 cessible rocks, or sometimes in marshes near the sea, 

 reserving the place selected entii-ely to themselves, and 

 not even permitting birds of their own s^^ecies to intrude 

 \ipon their privacy ; nevertheless, they are not always 

 suffered to go unmolested, seeing that their eggs are re- 

 garded as dainties, being thought to resemble those of 

 the Plover. 





YOUNG GULLS COVERED WITH DOWN. 



