18/4.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE GREY-CAPPED GULLS. 293 



hood, but much lighter than the under wing-coverts, which are of a 

 deep smoke-grey ; underparts and tail pure white. But it will be 

 observed that there is a considerable difference both in the size and 

 in the coloration of the soft parts of the two species ; and this is 

 much more noticeable on handling the different specimens than can 

 be gathered from any mere description. It must be admitted that 

 Swainson in his original description states that the bill and feet of 

 the African bird are "deep crimson ;" but, with every allowance for 

 fading, I cannot imagine the colour in those I have examined to 

 have ever been more than "orange-red," very different from the 

 livid red or brilliant lake-colour of the American specimens. Of 

 course I am now alluding to adults only ; but, as regards size, a 

 glance at the coarser and stronger feet even in the immature 

 American birds would enable me to distinguish them from the 

 African form. Without, however, insisting too strongly upon the 

 value of these differences, I consider that the two forms are at least 

 as much entitled to specific distinction as L. glaucus and L. leuco- 

 pterus, or L. marinus and L. fuscus, to say nothing of the species 

 which surround L. argentatus. This conclusion is in no way 

 influenced by the fact of the two species being found in different 

 continents ; for I am at the present moment unable to separate the 

 Saddle-backed Gulls which, under the titles of L. dominicanus, vetula, 

 and anlipodum, with other synonyms, inhabit both the Atlantic and 

 Pacific coasts of South America, the south coast of Africa, New 

 Zealand, and many of the intervening islands. It would seem that 

 these Grey-capped Gulls are representative species on either side of 

 the South Atlantic, in the same way that L. heermanni on the west 

 coast of America replaces L. crassirostris, Vieill. (i. melanurus, 

 Temm.), in the Japan and China seas — not to quote other instances 

 which are not quite so evident. 



But the question of the distinctness of these two forms is a mere 

 trifle to the maze of confusion iu which both these and two totally 

 different species have been involved, and which I will do my best to 

 unravel. To do this it will be better to take them separately. 



L. phceocephalus is identified by Bruch (J. f. O. 1855, p. 290) 

 with L. ridibundus ; but he could never have seen a true specimen. 

 Finsch and Hartlaub (Vog. Ost.-Afr. p. 825) describe the real bird 

 from Bissao with a grey head, but are probably wrong as regards the 

 specimen with a white head from the Cape of Good Hope, received 

 through Verreaux. Blasius again (J. f. O. 1865, p. 3/6) may pos- 

 sibly have had a specimen of the Grey-capped Gull in immature 

 plumage before him ; but he goes on to confound it with L. hart- 

 laubi, Bruch, a species which that author places in his genus Gavia, 

 close to Gelastes. This latter species has a certain superficial re- 

 semblance to the former, and it also has the under wing-coverts of a 

 smoke-grey ; but it is altogether a smaller bird than L. phceocephalus, 

 the wing being only 11 inches and the tarsus 1*7 in length ; besides 

 which, it never has a hood. It is a coast resident, and breeds near 

 the Cape of Good Hope ; it is, in fact, a member of the same group 

 as L. seopuli/ius, Forst., of New Zealand, L. nova hollandice, L. 



