THE FULMAR PETREL, GULL, AND TERN. 



481 



The Fulmar Petrel {Procellaria gladaUa 



from the summit and the bottom of 



The Albatross makes its home on the lofty precipices of Tristan 

 d'Acunha, the Crozettes, the Marion Islands, and other similar lo- 

 calities. 



The Fulmar Petrel is a rather large bird, being about nineteen 

 inches long and stoutly- 

 built. It is very plenti- 

 ful at St. Kilda, and is 

 used for various purposes, 

 furnishing down and oil, 

 besides being itself eaten. 

 Like several other petrels, 

 the Fulmar is able, when 

 alarmed, to eject from the 

 mouth the oil with which 

 it is so liberally supplied. 

 The egg — for there is never 

 more than one — of the Ful- 

 mar Petrel is laid upon a 

 narrow ledge of cliff, and 

 always at a considerable distance 

 the rock. 



The Great Black-backed Gull is a very fine bird, not very plen- 

 tiful on our coasts, but spread over the greater part of the British 

 shores. 



This bird prefers low-lying and marshy lands, and is found on the 

 flat shores of Kent and Essex at the mouth of the Thames, where.it 

 is popularly known under the name of the Cob. It is very plentiful 

 on the shores of Sweden and Norway, and on some of the islands of 

 Shetland and Orkney it breeds in abundance, the eggs being highly 

 valued on account of their rich flavor and large size. 



It is a fierce bird, and when wounded will fight vigorously for its 

 liberty. The nest of this species is of grass, and generally contains 

 three eggs of greenish dun flecked w^ith gray^and brown. In the sum- 

 mer plumage the head and neck of the Great Black-backed Gull are 

 white; the upper surface of the body is dark leaden gray, with some 

 white upon the quill feathers of the wings; the whole of the under sur- 

 face is pure white ; and the legs and feet are pinkish. The length of 

 this bird is about thirty inches. 



The common Tern, or Sea Swallow, is very plentiful on our coasts, 

 and may be seen flying along on rapid wing, its long forked tail giving 

 it so decidedly a swallow-like air that its popular name of Sea Swallow 

 is well applied. 



The Tern breeds on low-lying lands and makes a very rude nest, 

 being, indeed, nothing more than a shallow depression in the earth, 



41 2 F 



