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LAIUD/K — THE GULLS AND TEUNS — LAKUS. 



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and in some smumors single inmuituro birds may be soon tliroughoufc the season ; no 

 old ones are si'en in summer. Specimens have been seemed in the tall as late aa 

 November 7; these vary greatly in size, differing in length Iron, twelve inches to 

 tiiiuteen and one half. 



Audubon met wit'i *:his Gull in the neighborhood of Cincinnati in Augi'-', 1811). 

 Alter tlu- female liatl been shot, another bird, evidently her mate, alighted imei. diately 

 by her side to share her fate. Audubon afterward met with the sanu- species on the 

 Mississippi. In May, 1833, he observed this bird in great numbers in the Passama- 

 ([uoddy. at Eastport. At low water they covered all the sand and nnid bars in the 

 neighborhood. Tlu'V were very gentle, scarcely heeding his near presence ; and his son 

 sliot si'venteen at a single tlischarge of his doubh'-barrelled gun. They wen' all young 

 iiinls of the itreceding year. There were no indications in either sex that they would 

 inobably breed that .season, lie found tlicir stomachs filled with coleopterous insects 

 which they had caught on the wing or picked up from the water. On the 'JMi of 

 August, 1831, he shot ten others in tlie same locality. In their sttmiachs weve shrimps 

 and small Hsh. None were observed by .\udubon in any jiart of the (iidf of St. Law- 

 rcnce. on the coast of Labrador, ov of Newfoundland. In the winter he found these 

 (iiills common in the harbor of Charh'ston; but never saw any at that sea.son about 

 the mouths of the Mississippi. The flight of this bird he describes as being light, 

 elevated, and rapid, more resembling that of Terns than is usually the ca.so with 

 (lulls. Amlubon. as well as Vju'rcU, refers this bird to CJreenland; but I'rofessor 

 h'linliardt thinks this reference incorrect. 



hidividuab' of this sjiecies have been sliot in various parts of Kuro])e. One was 

 taktu near Uelfast in ISIS, auii another was shot on the coast. In IS.M nue was shot 

 on lioch liomond, in Scotland, :<.nd another on a lake in the North of Kugland; and 

 since that tinu' .several others have been taken in that ('" "^rict. 



Mr. l>onald (iinin found a few of this si>ciies breeding in the marshes (d' Swan 

 I'! "k. not far from Shoal hake, in <'ompany with the Franklin (iull. 



Mr. Mali foiuid these birds not inu'omniou iii the marshes near the Yukon, but rare 

 ni'ar the main river. They were nM>st numenms on the Kaig\il IJivcr, where they 

 wi'vc breeding, not far from Nulato. Their eggs have been obtained near I'ort 

 Yukon; and the birds themselves are not very rare at Sitka, where ItisidiolY tibtai'ied 

 several spccinuMis, 



Mr, MacFarlane found this species brecdiu;; in the wooded regious in the neigli- 

 iiorhood of Ktut .'Vnderson. All the nests were placed either in bushes or on trec.s, 

 at various heights from the grouu'l — none less than four feet, and others frimi fifteen 

 to twenty feet. One, found .luiu' -3, IStil, was on a tne and at a heiglit of from 

 twelve to fourteen feet; it was Ix'tween twosnnill iionds of water aliont a hundred 

 feet from either. The eggs were fresh, iudieating that this pair must have nested 

 uinisually late, .\nother nest, found on tbi- following day, was on the dry brancli of 

 a pine-tree, ami was al)out ten feet from the ground. There were no sticks in this 

 nest, but it was composed of dark velvety pine-leaves and line down, lie nuMitions 

 meeting with this (lull in tha* sea.son nnich more freipiently on his line of travel 

 tliaii 11' any other occasion; wiiile it was much later than usual in nesting. 



Mr. Kenni(ott foiind this <!nll nesting in the nel_dd)orhooil of Fort Yukon, and 

 (leseiibcs the lu'st as being (d' about the size of that of Zrnnnhini I'ln'o/hiriists, but the 

 cavity is rather deeper. It was placeil on the side-branch id' a green spruce, several 

 I'let I'nnn the trunk, and ai ut twenty feet from th" ground, near a lake. Mr. Keni\i- 

 I'oll saw several nests near tliis one, all alike ami in similar positions, execpt that 

 sniiie were not over ten feet from the groiiiiil, and ivere on smaller trees; be ill were 



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