40 THE GERMAN ARCTIC EXPEDITION. 



thus form the so-called " gull mountains " of which Fr. 

 Boie, Faber, Brehm, and other travellers cannot relate 

 enough. These creatures are, upon the whole, known 

 to be very sociable and gentle, so their cry only ex- 

 presses contentment and liveliness. Now and then, 

 however, our attention would be aroused when those 

 tones were quicker, more decided, and fell heavily on 

 the ear. We naturally looked round for the cause, and 

 saw three of them flying terror-stricken, followed by 

 another bird with darker plumage, longer wings, and a 

 quicker, stronger flight. It is the robber gull (Lestris) ; 

 and now an odd spectacle is presented to our sight. 

 One of our small gulls has just caught a little fish 

 which, prompted by curiosity, had come to the surface, 

 and flies hurriedly forward anxious to devour it. His 

 plundering dark cousin, not far off, roving apparently 

 purposeless above the waves, scarce has time to espy 

 this, when he darts swiftly down, catches the flying gull, 

 and sets upon it unmercifully, until bursting into this 

 scream of terror, it opens its beak and lets the booty 

 fall. The robber having now gained his end, quits the 

 chase, and rushes after the falling fish which, with 

 incredible agility, he catches half-way. In the next 

 moment we see the bird again quietly circling above the 

 waves as if nothing had happened, or sailing slowly in 

 the distance, bent upon robbing other gulls of their 

 hard-earned meal. 



Besides the gulls, we saw in stormy weather a small 

 bird known to all sailors as the stormy petrel {Tlialas- 

 sidroma pelagica, L.). It is almost entirely dark brown, 

 and is chiefly seen in violent stormy weather, when it 

 seems to run un wearily on the water, seldom rising higher. 



