BLACK-HEADED GULL. 311 



in South Norway and Sweden, Central Europe, the valley of the Danube, 

 in Russia south of the Gulf of Finland, in Turkestan, and in South 

 Siberia, and is an accidental visitor to Archangel. It has not been known 

 to breed in Spain, and is principally known in the basin of the Mediter- 

 ranean as a winter visitor, but there is a colony in Sardinia. It winters in 

 the Red Sea, and in Northern India, China, and Japan. The nearest ally 

 of the Black-headed Gull is the Adriatic Black-headed Gull (Larus mela- 

 nocephalus], which differs in having the head jet-black instead of brownish 

 black, the bill somewhat stouter, and by having little or no black on the 

 margin of the inner web of the third primary at any age or season. 



Gulleries were formerly much more numerous in England than they 

 are now ; in some instances the birds have deserted a favourite district in 

 consequence of its having been reclaimed, but in others they have formed a 

 new colony in the nearest suitable locality. Since the reclamation of 

 Pilling Moss in Lancashire, for instance, the Black-headed Gulls that for- 

 merly bred there have emigrated to Cockerham Moss, about a mile distant. 

 I am indebted to the Rev. J. W. Waithman for a water-colour drawing of 

 the colony on Pilling Moss before it was deserted. 



My friend Mr. W. Becher has sent me the following interesting par- 

 ticulars of the gullery at Twigmore, near Brigg, the property of Major 

 Sutton : " At the present time there are two pools, one of which is inter- 

 sected by two small islands, connected to the mainland and to each other 

 by hand-bridges, brushwood being laid where the ground is swampy. This 

 latter was a favourite nesting-place for the Gulls. Part of the wild heath 

 has been planted, within the last fifty years, with larch, oak, Scotch fir, and 

 birch trees ; several of the latter are dead, and on these the Gulls perch 

 freely, as well as on the living trees. Last year a Gull built on a dead 

 birch. This year I climbed up to a nest, some seven or eight feet from the 

 ground, built in a dwarf Scotch fir standing on an island. There was also 

 a nest on the sloping roof of the boat-house ; but the majority were either 

 on the bare ground or amongst the flags, and some were in a tuft of nettles. 

 It was a very curious sight to see the Gulls perching on the roof of the 

 boat-house as freely as Pigeons ; and the hand-rail of the bridge would 

 frequently be occupied by a row of birds mostly standing on one leg. 

 The keeper tells me that he has seen Coots carry off the eggs of the 

 Gulls in the same manner that a Crow does, with their bills stuck into the 

 shells/' 



The most celebrated breeding-place of the Black-headed Gull in the 

 British Islands is Scoulton Mere, not far from Hingham in Norfolk. The 

 lake is entirely surrounded by plantations of oak, beech, Scotch fir, and 

 spruce-fir. It covers about 150 acres ; but 70 acres of this area are taken 

 up with a large island upon which the gullery is situated. The colony 

 consists of about 8000 birds, and is said to be gradually increasing in size. 



