56 Allen's naturalist's library. 



Hungary. It has been known to occur off tlie mouth of the 

 Somme in Northern France, and there is, therefore, nothing 

 remarkable in the fact that it should occasionally turn up in 

 England. 



Habits. — Scarcely any notes have been recorded respecting 

 the habits of this Gull, which has been found in colonies in 

 various parts of the Mediterranean, and apparently nests in 

 many places within this area, though up to the present the 

 eggs found by Mr. Dresser and other ornithologists in Spain 

 have turned out to be those of the Gull-billed Tern, with the 

 flocks of which L. melanocephalus often mingles. 



Nest. — As yet undescribed. 



Eggs. — Three in number, varying very much in colour, the 

 ground tint of some being light clay-brown or buff, while 

 others are very dark chocolate or olive-brown. The spots and 

 blotches are darker brown, and the underlying markings are 

 light purplish-grey. Axis, i'9-2T5 inches; diam. i*4-i'5. 



IV. Bonaparte's gull, larus philadelpiha. 



Sterna pJiiladclpJiia, Ord. in Guthrie's Geogr. 2nd Amer. ed. ii. 



p. 319(1815). 

 Gavia bonapartii (Sw. & Rich.) Macgill. Brit. B. v. p. 610 



(1852). 

 Larus Philadelphia, B. O. U. List Brit. B. p. 192 (1SS3); 



Saunders, ed. Yarrell's Brit. B. iii. p. 584 (1884) ; Seebohm, 



Hist. Brit. B. iii. p. 307 (1885); Saunders, Man. Brit. B. 



p. 645 (1889) ; Lilford, Col. Fig. Brit. B. part xxix. (1894) ; 



Saunders, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxv. p. 185 (1896). 



Adult Male. — General colour above pearly-grey, including the 

 wing-coverts ; all the coverts round the bend of the wing, bastard- 

 wing, and primary-coverts pure white ; first four primaries white, 

 with black ends, the first one black along the outer web, the second 

 slightly shaded with grey on the inner web, the third and fourth 

 more distinctly grey on the latter, the rest of the primaries grey, 

 with black near the tips, which show a small terminal grey spot, 

 the black decreasing in extent towards the inner primaries ; 

 secondaries grey, with narrow white edges to some of the inner 

 ones ; lower rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail white ; head all 



