440 LARIDA 
in the same locality, greedily tearing at a carcase of a 
cat washed ashore. The bird allowed me to advance to 
within thirty yards of it, and did not move until it saw 
me peering suspiciously at it through my binoculars. It 
then walked sedately a few paces from its feast, just as 
a Great Black-backed Gull would do, and slowly flapped 
out to sea. Another occasion on which I met a Glau- 
cous Gull that admitted near approach was on December 
80th, 1897, in Dingle Harbour, when one flew past me 
on the wing only some twenty yards away. 
Flight.—This bird can readily be distinguished on the 
wing from the large indigenous Gulls, if sufficiently near for 
the absence of black on the primaries to be ncticed. From 
the Iceland Gull, which it closely resembles, it may be dis- 
tinguished by its larger size, shorter wings, and heavier 
flight. A Glaucous Gull, flying, looks almost as large as 
a ‘Crem Black-backed Gull: an Iceland Gull is more the 
size of a Herring-Gull. 
Voice-—The voice is hoarse, the note produced being a 
loud cackle. 
Food.—This and the Great Black-backed Gull feed much 
after the same fashion, both greedily devouring stranded 
carcases. I have observed this habit on the Dublin coast. 
Cox refers to one seen in the last-named district, which 
resorted for food to a carcase for a week or ten days. 
The bird is omnivorous, and when immature is known to) 
eat, among other things, the berries of Empetrum nigrum, 
in South Greenland (Saunders). 
Nest.—The Glaucous Gull builds not only on precipitous 
cliffs, but also on low-lying rocks and on sand-banks. The 
eggs, generally laid in June, are stone-colour, spotted with 
light grey and brown. 
Geographical distribution.—This bird has a remarkably 
wide geographical distribution; in its breeding range in 
summer it is circumpolar. According to Mr. Saunders it is 
common and resident in Iceland.' 
The winter migration extends to Southern Europe, 
including the Mediterranean basin, Black and Caspian Seas; 
eastward over the sea-board of the Asiatic Continent to 
Japan, and westward along the American coasts to Cali- 
fornia on the Pacific side, and the Bermudas on the 
Atlantic side. 
1 Mr. F. Coburn states that he only met three individuals in North 
Iceland in the summer of 1889 (‘ Zoologist,’ 1901, p. 415). 
