298 LA.RID.E. 



The Laridce may be divided into three subfamilies, thus dis- 

 tinguished : 



a. The upper mandible longer than the 



lower LarincE, p. 293. 



b. The mandibles of equal length Sternince, p. 306. 



c. Bill excessively compressed, the lower 



mandible much longer than the 



upper Khynckopinat, p. 327. 



Subfamily TARING. 



Bill stout, compressed, of moderate length, the upper mandible 

 the longer, much curved at the end and usually bent down over 

 the tip of the lower, angle of the lower mandible prominent and 

 near the end of the bill ; nostrils oblong, some distance from the 

 base of the mandible. Tarsus of moderate length, scutulated in 

 front; feet large, toes fully webbed, hind toe small and in one 

 genus (not Indian) wanting. Wings long, exceeding the tail. 



The Gulls are sea-birds as a rule, though many of them are 

 found about rivers and marshes, and even inland far from water. 

 They are active and noisy, of powerful flight, and many of them 

 are migratory, only two of the species that visit the Indian coasts 

 having been found breeding there. They feed but little on living 

 fish, chiefly on dead fish, Crustacea, and garbage of all kinds floating 

 or on the shore ; and inland they eat insects, worms, eggs, weakly 

 or young birds. They habitually rest on the water of sea, lake, or 

 river, though they may often be seen sitting on land, and they 

 walk and swim well. 



There is but a single Indian genus. 



Genus LARUS, Linn., 1766. 



Characters of the subfamily. Tail of moderate length, square 

 at the end. Wing long, 1st primary longest. 



This genus is cosmopolitan or nearly so, but a majority of the 

 44 species (several of which are geographical races or subspecies) 

 enumerated in Mr. Howard Saunders's British Museum Catalogue 

 inhabit the temperate regions of the Northern or Southern Hemi- 

 sphere. Seven species have been recorded on Indian coasts and 

 rivers, but whilst all of these occur to the westward in Sind, only four 

 have been observed in the Bay of Bengal and but two in Ceylon. 



Key to the Species. 



a. A black or dark brown head in summer, traces 



of which usually remain in winter. 

 a'. Mantle pale grey in adults. 



a" Size large ; wing- 19 L. ichthyaetus, p. 29.). 



b". Size moderate. 

 a 3 . Wing 11-75 ; first quill white in adults, 



with black edges and tip L. ridibundus, p. '300. 



