143 



RUNT PIGEONS. 



have seen a few specimens in London, called also the great 

 China Gull; but as to their origin I know nothing. In appear- 

 ance they were much larger than the common kinds, approach- 

 ing in form that of the Spanish Runts, smooth-headed and 

 clean-footed. The scapular feathers, and the wings, with the 

 exception of the extreme or the marginal pinion feathers, 

 were black, the marginal flight feathers and the rest of the 

 plumage being white, thus bearing a marked resemblance to 

 the large Black-backed Gulls (Larus Marinus) so common on 

 our coasts. I believe there are also some stuffed specimens 

 of this variety in the British Museum." 



