GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL. 331 



Scotland. Its favourite breeding grounds are either 

 the flat tops of inaccessible rocks or islands in the 

 midst of lakes. It finds the former of these in the 

 Orkneys and Shetlands, consequently it breeds in large 

 numbers in these islands. 



The Great Black-backed Gull is by no means so 

 gregarious as the other Gulls, and is never seen in 

 large flocks. Neither do they breed in such close 

 proximity as most of the others of this family. It is 

 very shy and wary, and is therefore very difficult of 

 approach with a gun. It feeds upon fish (dead and 

 alive), all sorts of refuse which is left on the shore by 

 the receding tide, and the eggs of smaller sea birds are 

 taken in large numbers and even the young birds them- 

 selves are devoured. 



The eggs of this bird are much sought after for 

 eating purposes and are collected as soon as laid, when 

 they can be reached. The birds then lay a second 

 clutch, which is also taken, but the third clutches are 

 left to be hatched out. 



The Great Black-backed Gulls are strictly sea birds, 

 and are seldom seen any distance from the coast. Their 

 nests are placed on the ground or in a niche in a rock, 

 and are large loose structures made of grass. 



Three is the usual number of eggs. They are brown 

 in ground colour, spotted with dark brown and under- 

 lying greyish markings. They can usually be dis- 

 tinguished from the eggs of the other Gulls by their 

 larger size, but very large eggs of the Herring Gull 

 closely resemble small ones of this species. 



The breeding plumage of this bird scarcely differs 

 from that of the Lesser Black-backed Gull ; but the 

 back is a little darker, and the bird is of course very 

 much larger. 



