LARIDM. 



81 



" The adult bird in winter has the lower part of the neck behind French grey, like the 

 back ; the occiput, top of the head, and the region of the ear-coverts streaked with dark grey, 

 the other parts as in summer. Young birds of the year have the bill black ; the irides dusky, 

 almost black ; upper part of the head white ; the occiput and nape with a few dusky grey 

 patches on a white ground ; the lower part of the neck behind marked by numerous blackish 

 grey feathers, forming transverse crescentic bands ; back, scapularies, great wing-coverts, and 

 secondaries French grey; point of the wing, and the series of smaller wing-coverts nearly 

 black, forming a conspicuous dark stripe down the wing when closed, and across it when 

 expanded ; tertials French grey, with a spot of black near the end, the inner broad web varied 

 with white ; tail-coverts and tail-feathers white, the latter black at the end, forming a 

 conspicuous transverse bar ; the middle tail-feathers having the largest portion of black, the 

 outer tail-feather on each side the smallest ; chin, neck, breast, and all the under surface of 

 the body pure white ; under tail-coverts white, tail-feathers white at the base, ending in dark 

 or lead-grey; legs, toes, and membranes pale brown." 



Mr, Howard Saunders gives its range as follows: — "Arctic region, and along the 

 sea-coasts of the Subarctic region, down to about 40° N. lat., breeding perhaps even in the 

 Canaries ; in winter it is abundant about the Azores, Canaries, and opposite coast of Africa. 

 In America it is found on both Atlantic and Pacific coasts, but does not seem to extend far 

 down the latter, nor to Japan or China, even in winter." There are therefore numerous places 

 where we might expect to fall in with it on an Australian voyage. 







