116 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS. 



sixteen inches. The dark hood which distinguishes this 

 bird is assumed in the spring, and the change in colour is 

 effected rapidly. The young birds have the head marked 

 with greyish-brown, the tail is white, with a broad bar 

 of black at the end, and the beak, legs, and feet are a 

 yellowish-brown. In winter the plumage of the bird is 

 subject to considerable alteration. In the adult Black- 

 headed Gull the head is only slightly marked with a dusky 

 patch by the ear coverts ; the back and wings are a 

 beautiful French grey, and the neck, breast, and all the 

 under part of the body are pure white; feet, legs, and 

 bill are red. 



The Black-headed Gull is found plentifully in the 

 Hebrides, and in Orkney and Shetland ; they also breed 

 in Sweden, Russia, and Siberia, and are very abundant in 

 Holland. They visit the French coasts in winter, and have 

 been seen in Switzerland, Genoa, Italy, and Germany. 

 The flight, like most of the Gull tribe, is easy, strong, 

 and buoyant^ 



