

LAUGHING GULL. 559 



were brothers. On the Tortugas, where these Gulls also 

 breed in abundance, I found their eggs deposited in slight 

 hollows scooped in the sand. Whilst at Galveston, in 

 Texas, I found their nests somewhat less bulky than in the 

 Jerseys, which proved to me how much birds are guided in 

 these matters by differences in atmospheric temperature 

 and locality. 



" Whilst at Great Egg Harbour, in May 1829, shortly 

 after my return from England, I found this species breed- 

 ing in great numbers on the margins of a vast salt marsh, 

 bordering the sea shore, though separated from the 

 Atlantic by a long and narrow island. They constantly 

 evinced a dislike to rocky shores. About sunrise every 

 morning, an immense number of these birds would rise in 

 the air, as if by common consent, and wing their way 

 across the land, probably intent on reaching the lower 

 shores of the Delaware River, or indeed farther towards 

 the head waters of Chesapeake Bay. They formed them- 

 selves into long, straggling lines, following each other 

 singly, at the distance of a few yards. About an hour 

 before sunset, the same birds were seen returning in an 

 extended front, now all silent, although in the morning 

 their cries were incessant, and lasted till they were out of 

 sight. On arriving at the breeding-ground, they imme- 

 diately settled upon their nests. On a few occasions when 

 it rained and blew hard, the numbers that left the nests 

 were comparatively few, and those, as I thought, mostly 

 males. Instead of travelling high, as they were wont to 

 do in fair and calm weather, they skimmed closely over the 

 land, contending with the wind with surprising pertinacity, 

 and successfully too. At such times they were also quite 

 silent. I now and then observed some of them whilst on 

 wing, and at a considerable height, suddenly check their 



