[2.94] BIRDS OF OREGON 



of insects, small fish, and crayfish, and the species is undoubtedly of 

 value in the destruction of grasshoppers, crickets, and various species of 

 beetles, particularly on its breeding grounds. One stomach from Klamath 

 Falls, taken September 2.3, 1916, contained fragments of a dragonfly and 

 pieces of a small fish. Another, from Warner Valley, taken May 18, 19x0, 

 contained three minnows, a weevil, and a water beetle. A third, from 

 Warner Valley, taken May 2.0, 192.3, contained 2.7 carabid beetles, a water 

 beetle, a cricket, and a spider. In the winter, in common with the other 

 gulls, the Ring-bill becomes a scavenger on the Oregon coast and inlets 

 and helps to keep the beaches clear of dead fish, birds, and other animal 

 matter. 



Short-billed Gull: 



Larus canus brachyrhynchus Richardson 



DESCRIPTION. "Adults in summer: Mantle light pearl gray; rest of plumage, except 

 quills, white; outer primary mainly black, with a large white spot near end; second 

 primary with a smaller white spot, white tip, and wedge of gray on inner web; 

 third with white tip and a large white space on inner web between gray and black; 

 bill greenish, with yellow tip; feet and legs greenish. Adults in winter: head, neck, 

 and chest mottled with dusky. Young: upper parts grayish brown, feathers 

 bordered with pale grayish buff; head, neck, and lower parts brownish gray; tail 

 gray at base, brownish gray toward end, and narrowly tipped with white." (Bailey) 

 Downy young: The young, when first hatched, is well covered with a warm coat of 

 soft, thick down, 'pale drab-gray' to 'pale smoke-gray' on the upper parts, sides, 

 and throat; 'pale pinkish buff' on the breast and belly; and tinged with the latter 

 color on the sides of the head and neck. The frontal and loral region is clear black. 

 The sides of the head and neck are boldly and clearly spotted with black in a very 

 distinct pattern, the spots coalescing into an indistinct Y on the crown; an irregular 

 W on the occiput; a large distinct crescent on the cervix; and a small crescent on the 

 throat. The remainder of the upper parts are heavily but less distinctly mottled 

 with duller black, becoming grayer posteriorly. The under parts are unspotted." 

 (Bent) Si%e: "Length 16.50-18.00, wing 13.95, bill 1.45, depth of bill at angle 

 .40-. 50." (Bailey) Nest: Poorly constructed of twigs and grass in small trees or 

 on the ground. Eggs: 2. or 3, ground color brown to buff, spotted and blotched 

 with various shades of brown and drab. 



DISTRIBUTION. General: Breeds in northwestern America east to Mackenzie River 

 and south to Alberta and British Columbia. Winters on Pacific Coast from Van- 

 couver Island south. In Oregon: Winter resident from August to April, chiefly in 

 coast counties and along Columbia River. 



THE SHORT-BILLED GULL is a regular and sometimes abundant winter 

 visitor to the Oregon coast, where it can easily be confused with the 

 somewhat larger Ring-billed Gull. It has a noticeably smaller and weaker 

 bill than the latter, however, and is appreciably smaller. It appears on 

 the coast in August usually, although we have one record from Newport 

 Bay on July 2.2,. It becomes more common by October and at times during 



