Vol. II, Pt. I] GIFFORD— BIRDS OF THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS 43 



attempt to frighten him away from a nest near by, which, 

 however, was never discovered. The only egg- known was 

 taken by the Webster-Harris Expedition on November 10, 

 1897,^ from a bird shot on Albemarle Island. 



Sexual organs of birds taken in October and November 

 were large, while some adult birds taken off south Albemarle 

 about the 1st of May were in fresh plumage and had large 

 sexual organs. Mr. Beck wrote on the label of a male from 

 Seymour, taken July 25, "testes large." 



Wherever they were at all common, they came about the 

 vessel, usually circling many times and often alighting on 

 the water or on the booms, railings, etc., of the vessel, being 

 fully as bold as the Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larns glauces- 

 cens) about San Francisco Bay, California. 



The flight of this species is similar to that of other gulls of 

 the same genus. They can walk and run quite swiftly, and, 

 when rising from the ground, usually run three or four feet 

 and rise against the wind. Like most other gulls they are 

 readily attracted to wounded or dead birds. 



The Sooty Gull is certainly a scavenger of the first order. 

 Whenever tortoises or turtles were skinned on board the 

 schooner, several gulls would loiter about picking up refuse. 

 At Villamil, Albemarle Island, it was a common sight to see 

 them feeding with the chickens about the village and under 

 the houses, which in most cases were placed on timbers sev- 

 eral feet above the ground. On the beach west of Villamil, 

 forty or fifty gulls were one day observed feeding on the 

 putrid remains of a turtle. 



The following notes were made at Villamil on August 20 : 

 There were a dozen gulls feeding near a house where a bull 

 had been slaughtered. Some were tugging away at bits of 

 fat and flesh, often bracing themselves with their feet. Oth- 

 ers were feeding on a fresh hide that had just been staked out 

 to dry. Two or three adults were bullying the younger birds. 

 Whenever an adult desired a piece of meat on which one of the 

 younger ones was pulling, he would lower his head, arch his 

 neck, and give a long cackling call, at the same time making 

 a short rush at the enemy. The young birds always got out 

 of the way when such tactics were pursued. There was one 



iNov. Zool., V. 6, p. 189; v. 9, p. 413. 



