414 LARIDAL 
ing the envied tit-bit, too cumbersome for the smaller birds 
to secure. 
Food.—Like other Gulls, this species will eat almost 
anything. It paces the sea-shore and shallow channels 
for small fishes, crabs, shrimps, and shell-fish, and has 
a most interesting habit (which seems to have been over- 
looked by most observers) ‘ pool dancing,’ if one might adopt 
the term. It is this: a Black-headed Gull wades into a 
little pool, the water of which is only deep enough to cover 
part of its feet; it then lowers its head and looks at the 
bottom. Finding no food, it at once commences to prance 
up and down on the sandy floor, stirring up the sediment 
out of which it picks various marine creatures and frag- 
ments of seaweeds. I have seen many of these birds at 
this performance along the mud-flats of Dublin Bay, and 
have also noticed parties pattering along the dry sands 
in pursuit of sand-hoppers, or snapping at flies as they 
swarmed on decaying animal or vegetable matter. Reference 
has already been made as to the manner in which floating 
refuse 1s greedily snatched up. Away from the tide, beetles, 
worms, and grubs, are consumed: in the dusk of a summer’s 
evening a novice might mistake this Gull for a Barn-Owl, 
as he watched it hawking for cock-chafers and moths over 
corn-fields and ditches with rapid and twisting flight. In 
hard weather Lapwings are often troubled by this species, 
as it pursues and bullies them to such an extent that they 
are obliged to forfeit their hard-sought-for worms. In 
captivity Black-headed Gulls are practically omnivorous. 
One, of which I made a great pet, and had for many years, 
used to swallow small mice entire, and such diet was greatly 
relished. 
Voice.—The term ‘ Laughing Gull’ has been applied to 
this species on account of its peculiar voice, which is 
supposed to resemble a laugh. Of this it is a very feeble 
mimicry, if at all. There is nothing bright or merry about 
the sound; it is irritably harsh and scolding. If the com- 
parisons are at all befitting, the cry may be likened to that 
of a cross-tempered two-years-old child, who passionately 
ejaculates with wide open mouth, the syllables yaah-haa, 
yaah-ha, yaah-waw. The immature birds! which assemble 
' It is interesting to note that when the young first come down to the 
tide towards the end of June and during July, the full clutch of two 
or three birds seldom accompany the parents on the wing. I have 
