MASKED GULL. 549 



M. Temminck says this species has been taken in Baffin's 

 Bay and Davis 1 Straits. Professor Calvi of Genoa notices 

 two taken there, one in the year 1826, the other in 1827. 

 M. Temminck mentions that the eggs of this species, which 

 he had seen, were smaller than those of Larus ridibundus, 

 of an ash-green colour, with darker spots, and mentions 

 also that M. de Selys Longchamps had sent him word that 

 he had seen one example of this bird in the collection of 

 the Marquis Durazzo, which had been killed in Liguria. 

 M. Savi includes this species in his Birds of Italy. 



This Gull is best distinguished from the species next to 

 be described by its smaller size, its shorter and more slen- 

 der bill, its shorter legs, and smaller feet ; and in its sum- 

 mer-plumage by the hair- brown feathers about the head 

 forming a mask and not a hood. 



The particulars of the bird in summer-plumage from 

 Shetland, are The bill brownish-red ; the head and upper 

 part of the neck on the sides and front hair-brown, bounded 

 by blackish-brown ; no dark colour on the occiput, but 

 descending low on the fore part of the neck, where some 

 of the dark feathers were tipped with white ; the remaining 

 portion of the neck, the breast, abdomen, vent, and tail, 

 pure white ; upper surface of the wings pale ash-grey, 

 under surface greyish- white ; primaries white, edged and 

 tipped with black, broadest on the inner web, the shafts 

 white ; legs and toes brownish-red. 



In winter this bird, like all the Gulls which have dark- 

 coloured heads in summer, have the head white, with a few 

 dusky grey lines on the crown, a small patch of dusky black 

 under the eye, and another upon or under the ear-coverts. 

 The rest of the plumage as in summer, except that the 

 black colour on the wing-primaries is more intense from 

 the recent renewal of the feathers at the autumn moult. 



