192 cassell's book of birds. 



clamorousness observable in most other members of the genus. The Dutch have bestowed the name 

 of " Burgomaster " upon this bird ; and, according to Scoresby, it may with propriety be called the 

 chief magistrate of the feathered tribe in the Spitzbergen regions, as none of its class dare dispute its 

 authority, when with unhesitating superiority it descends on its prey, though in the possession of 

 another. The "Burgomaster'' is not a numerous species, and yet it is a general attendant on the whale- 

 fishers, whenever any spoils are to be obtained. It then hovers over the scene of action, and having 

 marked out its morsel, descends upon it, and carries it off on the wing. On its descent, the most 

 dainty food must be relinquished, though in the grasp of the Fulmar Petrel, the Ivory Gull, or the 

 Kittiwake. It seldom alights in the water ; when it rests on the ice it selects a hummock, and fixes 

 itself on the highest pinnacle. Sometimes it condescends to take a more humble situation, that offers 

 any advantages for procuring food. Upon these occasions the peculiarity of its appearance is very 

 striking. Its usual deportment is grave and imposing, exhibiting little of the vivacity or inquisitiveness 

 of many of its tribe ; it is roused to exertion chiefly by a sense of danger, or the cravings of hunger. 

 When it flies, it extends its wings more than any other species of Gull, and its flight is remarkably 

 buoyant ; when not in quest of food it is of a reserved disposition, seldom coming within range of 

 a fowling-piece, but keeping at a respectful distance, it utters at intervals a hoarse scream, of a sound 

 peculiar to itself. Scoresby found the eggs (which are of a yellowish grey, spotted and blotched with 

 brown and grey), deposited on the beach above high-water mark, in such a manner as to receive the 

 benefit of the full rays of the sun. According to Dr. Edmondson, a single bird of this species may 

 occasionally be met with accompanying a large flock of other Gulls, and feeding with them. 



THE LESSER WHITE-WINGED GULL. 

 The Lesser White-winged Gull (Larus leacopterus) has the head and neck entirely pure white; 

 the back and wings are pale grey ; the primary quills, chin, throat, breast, entire under surface, and 

 tail of a beautiful pure white. In the male the bill is yellow, with red angle to lower mandible ; the 

 eyes are straw-colour, and the legs flesh-red. This species is twenty-two inches long ; the pointed wings 

 when closed extend two inches beyond the tail. According to Faber this Gull has grey spots on its 

 winter plumage. The Lesser White-winged Gull (formerly confounded with L. glaucus) occupies the 

 northern portions of the globe, and has been seen by Arctic voyagers in Davis' Straits, Baffin's Bay, 

 and Melville Island. It is also found in Greenland, and, according to Audubon, is seen in North 

 America from Nova Scotia to New York during the winter months. This species is less shy than 

 the Herring Gull, it also proceeds farther up the rivers and salt-water creeks, and alights more 

 frequently in the water or on salt meadows than that bird. A few examples have been 

 shot in Northumberland, Yorkshire, and Ireland, as well as in the Orkney and Shetland Isles. 

 According to Faber this is the only Gull that winters in Iceland without breeding there. " I have," he 

 says, " travelled over most of the coast of the island, but have never found its breeding-place. A kw 

 days after the middle ot September a few specimens, both old and young, make their appearance on 

 the coast of Iceland, confining themselves to the northern parts, among the small inlets of which great 

 numbers pass the winter. When I lived on the innermost of the small fjords on the northern coast, 

 these birds were our daily guests. Towards the end of April their numbers decreased, and by the 

 end of May they had nearly all disappeared from Iceland. These tame birds came on land by my 

 winter dwelling on the northern coast, to snap up the entrails thrown away by the inhabitants, and 

 fought for them fiercely with the Raven. I had made one so tame that it came every morning at 

 a certain time to my door to obtain food, and then flew away again. It gave me notice of its 

 arrival by its cry. These Gulls indicated to the seal-shooters in the fjord where they should look for 

 seals, continually following their track in the sea, and hovering over them in flocks, with incessant 



