250 SWIMMERS. 



ICELAND GULL. 



white-winged gull. 



Larus leucopterus. 



Char Mantle pale pearl gray, rest of plumage white ; bill yellow, 

 with a patch of orange at the angle ; legs and feet bright pink. Length 

 about 25 inches, the female smaller. In winter the head and neck are 

 streaked with pale brownish gray. Young birds are mottled grayish 

 brown and pale gray, and become whiter with each moult. 



Nest. On a cliff or sandy beach ; when in the sand, it is a mere depres- 

 sion slightly lined with grass, but when a rock is chosen for the site a 

 compact structure is formed of sea-weed and grass lined with moss. 



Eggs. 2-3 ; pale or dark buff more or less tinged with green, some- 

 times almost olive drab ; average size about 2.75 X i.8o. 



Iceland Gull is a misnomer for this bird, as it appears in Iceland 

 in winter only, and then in very small numbers. The true home of 

 this Gull is in that portion of the Arctic Ocean which lies north of 

 America, and its breeding area extends from Greenland to Alaska; 

 elsewhere it is but a visitor. 



During the winter these birds range along the Atlantic shores 

 from Labrador to Cape Cod, though they are not numerous south 

 of the Bay of Fundy. A few examples have been taken on the 

 Great Lakes. 



In appearance this species is a small edition of the Glaucous 

 Gull, there being no perceptible difference in the coloration ; but 

 their habits are quite different. 



The flight of the Iceland Gull, its feeding habits, and its manners 

 generally, suggest a close aiTfiinity to the Herring Gull rather than to 

 the Burgomaster. 



