BIRDS—LARIDAE—RISSA. 853 
opinion, must give place to that of Ord, cited above; he also designates it as the ‘‘ Banded-tail 
_Tern.’’ To determine what species was described under the above name (if it was not distinct) 
has long been considered a problem which it was very desirable to solve; it agrees in every 
particular with specimens of the young of bonapartei, now under examination, Mr. Ord’s 
description is as follows : 
“Beneath pure white; above blue ash; below the auriculars a patch of dark slate; tail 
white, short, almost even, crossed by a dark brown band; a line of brown from the shoulder of 
the wing to the tertials. Weight full five ounces.”’ 
The slender and tern-like form of the biil probably induced Mr. Ord to put it in Sterna. 
Note by Dr, Suckley. —‘‘Abundant on Puget’s Sound, in the neighborhood of which I obtained 
several specimens. This species is the only gull commonly eaten by the Nisqually Indians. I 
broiled one of these birds and tound it about equal, in gastronomic qualities, to the Rallus 
crepitans.”’ 
List of specimens. 
Catal.| Sex. Locality. When col- Whence obtained. | Orig’!) Collected by— Length. Stretch | Wing. Remarks. 
No. | lected. No. | | of wings. 
| 
senna Coast New York. ...e..|eeseeeeeseeess| Cab. G. N. Lawrence. 
6927 reeves Nelson river, H. B, T. i wevees cere eece 
7934| @ | Arctic America... ....). 
3 .| California ...... . 
| San Diego, Cal. oe seeneee 
| Presidio, Cal....ssseeee ee eee cecccces 
5569 | © | Petaluma, Cal. sees seee|ceeees ener sees 
6469 |...0.. | Pugev’s Sound, W.T...| Aug. —, 1856 14.50 | 30,00 
| revert eee 
CHROICOCEPHALUS MINUTUS, Bruch. 
The Little Gull, 
Larus minutus, Pauzas, Reise, Il, 702.—Bonar. Syn. 1828, No. 292.—Ricu. & Sw. F. B. A. JI, 1831, 426.—Norr. 
Man. II, 1834, 289. 
Chroicocephalus minutus, Brucu, Cab. Jour. 1855, 290. 
Sp. Cu.—Adult. Head and upper part of the neck black ; a white crescent behind the eyes; part of the lower neck and 
under plumage roseate white ; rump and tail pure white ; back and wings of a pure and very pale bluish gray ; primaries and 
secondaries ash gray tipped with white ; bill deep lake red; iris dark brown; legs and feet carmine. Length, about 111g 
inches. 
Hab.—Arctic America? Europe. 
There is no specimen in the collection from North America, although a fine series from 
Europe has been presented to the Smithsonian Institution by the Norwich Museum, England. 
RISSA, Leach. 
Rissa, Leacu, Steph. Gen. Zool. XIII, 1825, 180. Type Larus tridactylus, L. 
Cu.—Bill rather long, strong, and much compressed ; culmen straight at base, curved from the nostrils to the tip ; nostrils 
lateral and longitudinal ; wings long and pointed ; tail even ; tarsi rather short ; toes slender and united by a full web; hind 
toe rudimentary or very small. 
