HERRING-GULL. 209 



with the ex'ception of the black outer primaries and black- 

 banded, white-tipped inner quills, is elsewhere snowy white ; 

 the bill is green at the base, yellower towards the tip, the legs 

 are distinctly greenish, and the irides blackish brown. In 

 winter the head and hind neck are streaked with grey, but not 

 blotched as in the winter Black-head. The young have mottled 

 brown mantles with greyish feather edges, and their heads, - 

 under parts, and flanks are spotted with grey and brown ; their 

 primaries are brown and lack the white mirrors and tips, and 

 the tail is broadly banded with black. The bill is brown, black 

 at the tip, the legs pale brown. As they advance towards 

 maturity the grey feathers appear in the mantle. Length, 

 I7'5 ins. Wing, 14*5 ins. Tarsus, 2 ins. 



Herring-Gull. Lams arjentatiis Pontopp. 



Though it frequently wanders inland, the Herring-Gull 

 (Plate 91) is the typical gull of the British coast. It nests on 

 all suitable cliffs and islands, on Scottish lochs, and a few 

 inland marshes. It has an American and western European 

 range, breeding so far south as northern France, and is partially 

 migratory, reaching the Mediterranean and other southern seas 

 in winter. 



The Herring-Gull roughly agrees with the Lesser Black- 

 backed in size, but its mantle is pearl -grey, not dark, and 

 its legs flesh-coloured, not yellow, as in the latter bird. Its 

 black outer primaries have " mirrors " like those of the 

 Common Gull, but they have white tips and grey inner edges ; 

 the yellow bill has a red mark or splash on the angled lower 

 mandible. Mottled brown birds in various stages of imma- 

 turity, for full plumage is not attained until the fourth or fifth 

 year, are common at all seasons, and through an optical illusion 

 appear larger than the grey and white old birds. Only by 

 careful expert examination can these young be distinguished 



Series II, P 



