HERRING GULL. 113 



307. COMMON-GULL (Larus cams). 

 Winter ^Mew, Sea Mew, Sea Mall or Maw, Sea Gall, Sea Cob, 

 Cob. This Gull is, on the whole, sufficiently general and well- 

 known on all parts of our coast to merit the prefix of Common, 

 which is usually applied to it. For though it is essentially a sea- 

 bird, yet during some weeks in the spring, it may frequently be 

 seen in the new-ploughed or sowed fields at some miles' distance 

 from the salt-water. Its nest may sometimes be found on marshes 

 or low flat islands, such as are not rare in some of our southern 

 estuaries, while in other districts it breeds on high rocks. In 

 either case, the nest is a structure of considerable size, formed of 

 sea-weed and grass, and the female deposits two or three eggs in 

 it, which are a good deal varied in appearance : " Some," says 

 Mr. Hewitson, "with a ground-colour of light blue, or straw- 

 colour, others green or brown ; some a good deal like eggs of the 

 Oyster-catcher, others covered all over with minute spots." Some, 

 moreover, are sufficiently well blotched and spotted with ash- 

 colour and dark-brown; others well streaked with the brown, 

 but with only a few spots of the grey colour. Fig. 2, plate XII. 



308. ICELAND GULL (Larus Islandicus). 



Lesser White-winged Gull. A bird which has been obtained 

 in this country from time to time, but in cases of no great 

 frequency. 



309. LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL (Larus fmcus). 



Yellow-legged Gull. This Gull is seen in sufficient numbers, 

 and all the year round, on many parts of the British coasts, and 

 in the south as well as the north. It almost exclusively prefers 

 localities to breed in which are characterised by the presence of 

 rocky cliffs, but yet makes a nest of some considerable thickness 

 even when placed on the grassy summit of some rocky island 

 " of grass loosely bundled together in large pieces, and placed in 

 some slight depression or hollow of the rock." Its nests are 

 intermingled, in several places, with those of the Herring Gull, in 

 many places greatly exceeding those of the latter, in others as 

 greatly inferior, in number. The eggs (two or three in number) 

 vary greatly in colouring, from a warm stone-colour, through 

 shades of brown, to pale green or light olive-green. The spots 

 and blotches vary too, and vary greatly, in number, size, position 

 and intensity; neutral- tint, chestnut brown, and dark brown being 

 all met with, and sometimes in the same specimen. Fig. 3, 

 plate XII. 



310. HEKRING GULL (Larus argentatus). 

 A very numerous species in many different parts of the king- 

 dom, where rocky coasts sufficiently high and precipitous are met 



