34 BRITISH SEA BIRDS. 



rudimentary hind toe, is one of the best known, 

 as it is one of the most widely distributed, British 

 species. These remarks are however most applicable 

 to the non-breeding season ; for during the nesting 

 time it is rather more local, owing to the conditions 

 under which its young are reared. The Kittiwake 

 very closely resembles the Common Gull in general 

 appearance, but the mantle is paler, the legs and 

 feet are dark brown, and the primaries, or longest 

 feathers of the wings, have broad black tips : it is 

 also a perceptibly smaller bird, the smallest in fact 

 of the typically marine Gulls. Of all the British 

 Gulls the Kittiwake is certainly the most maritime 

 in its habits, and is never known to visit inland 

 districts, unless driven from the coast by storms of 

 exceptional violence. Save in the breeding season 

 it may be met with on all the low-lying coasts, 

 visiting harbours, bays, and fishing villages, and 

 imbuing many a littoral scene with life. The 

 Kittiwake is a much more oceanic bird than the 

 Common Gull, and often wanders immense distances 

 from land in quest of food. It is said that birds 

 of this species have been known to follow vessels 

 across the North Atlantic, but this seems almost 

 incredible not because the bird is physically unable 

 to perform the feat, but because we can scarcely 

 believe any bird would wander of its own free-will 

 so far from the local centre of its habitat. One 

 of the most striking characteristics of the Kittiwake 

 is its peculiar cry, heard to the best advantage 



