548 LARUS ARGENTATUS. 



wings, and letting down their feet, so as to touch and sonic- 

 times pat tlie water, they pick it up without alighting. 

 Sometimes they plunge partly into the water, and occasion- 

 ally pick up their prey while swimming. All this while they 

 emit now and then a loud and rather shrill cry. Their food 

 consists of fishes of small size, occasionally large dead fish, 

 crabs, echini, asteriae, and mollusca. In winter and spring 

 they often travel in bands over the fields, searching the pas- 

 tures, and more especially ploughed land, for worms, grubs, 

 and insects. At that season they may sometimes be seen on 

 lakes, either solitary or in small flocks. They walk, and 

 even run with ease, and not ungracefully. Often, on the 

 sands, they may be seen rapidly patting the surface with their 

 feet ; but the purpose of this action is not understood, although 

 some have supposed it to be the causing of worms to emerge. 

 In frequented parts they are very shy, seldom allowing a 

 person to come within two hundred yards ; but w here they 

 are little disturbed they are less suspicious, although under 

 any circumstances they keep out of reach of ordinary shot. 

 They repose on beaches and headlands, sometimes standing 

 on one leg, but generally lying down. During very tempes- 

 tuous weather they fly inland, or betake themselves to some 

 partially sheltered place, near high water mark, and then lie 

 flat on the ground. On such occasions I have seen them 

 detained several days in one place, apparently without food, 

 the W'ind being so high that their excursions were but short. 

 They may then be more easily approached ; but as their flesh 

 can scarcely be relished as food, they are not much liable to 

 be molested, unless in the neighbourhood of towns. 



In the beginning of May they resort to their various 

 breeding places along the coasts, often in great numbers 

 betaking themselves to small unfrequented islands, frequently 

 also to the faces of abrupt cliffs, but sometimes settling here 

 and there in pairs. The nest, which is often bulky, is formed 

 of grass and herbaceous plants of various species, according to 

 the locality. The eggs, which are generally three, vary greatly 

 in size and colour, the smallest being two inches and a half 

 in length, the largest two inches and ten-twelfths, their 

 breadth from one inch and eight-twelfths to two-twelfths more ; 



