198 



BRITISH BIRDS. 



\ 



THE GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL. 



WAGEL. 



IMMATURE. 



THE bill is black, scarcely three inches long : 

 irides dark blue. The whole plumage is a mixture 

 of ash-coloured brown and white. The feathers 

 on the back are dark in the middle, with whitish 

 grey edges : wing coverts nearly the same, but 

 more spotted ; and the under parts of the body 

 have a much lighter and more mixed appearance: 

 quills plain black: middle tail feathers the same, 

 but tipped with w^hite, and crossed with a narrow 

 white bar towards the root or base : the side 

 feathers are mottled black and white : legs dirty 

 white, sometimes blushed with red. 



