672 COMMON GULL. 



to the North Cape, and in Northern and Central Russia. During 

 the colder months it occurs on the shores, lakes and rivers of the 

 rest of Europe, and on both sides of the Mediterranean basin, to 

 Palestine and the Suez Canal, as well as in the Nile valley and the 

 Persian Gulf. Birds which are, as a rule, larger and darker on the 

 mantle than western examples, inhabit Siberia as far as Kamchatka 

 in summer, and these frequent Japan and China in winter. From 

 the Pacific to Great Bear Lake, this Gull is represented in North 

 America by a slightly smaller species, L. brachyrhynchus ; but 

 throughout the rest of that continent we find L. dehnvarensis, a 

 rather larger bird, with a paler mantle and a doubly zoned bill. An 

 immature example of L. canus was, however, obtained in Labrador 

 on August 2ist i860, and is now in the Museum at Washington. 



Grassy islands and sides of lochs, or .slopes facing the sea and often 

 not far above high water, are favourite resorts ; and in such this 

 species usually breeds in colonies, making a somewhat large nest of 

 sea-weed, grass, heather (S:c., and beginning to lay in the first half of 

 May. The eggs, normally 3 in number, are olive-brown in ground- 

 colour, spotted and streaked with blackish ; but pale blue, straw- 

 coloured and light green varieties are not uncommon : measure- 

 ments 2*25 by I "5 in. As a rule this Gull does not go far from 

 land, and owing to its being one of the first to seek the shore on 

 the approach of coarse weather it has been made the subject of 

 many rhymes and poetical allusions. It feeds on small fish, 

 molluscs, crustaceans &:c., and may frequently be seen picking up 

 grubs on the furrows in company with Rooks, while it will some- 

 times eat grain, small birds, and " cheepers." It has often been seen 

 on the tops of trees, in Germany, Norway, Siberia, and elsewhere. 



The adult in summer has the head, tail, and entire under-parts 

 white ; mantle of a deeper grey than in any other medium-sized 

 Gull except the Kittiwake : primaries comparatively long, the three 

 outer pairs being dull black on the lower portions, with large white 

 ' mirrors ' near the tips on the ist and 2nd, and even on the 3rd in 

 mature birds ; in the other quills pale grey predominating and the 

 black merely forming a bar, while all except the ist quill are broadly 

 tipped with white ; bill greenish at the base, rich yellow towards the 

 point ; legs and feet greenish-yellow in summer, darker in winter. 

 Length i7-i8"5 in. ; wing 14-15 in. In winter the head and neck 

 are streaked and spotted with ash-brown, as shown in the illustra- 

 tion. In the young bird the primaries and the broad tail-band are 

 dark brown ; the under-side of the wing is mottled with brown, 

 whereas in L. ridihundiis it is grevish-white. 



