52 



BULLETIN 292;, IT. S. DEPARTMENT OE AGRICULTURE. 



indicating a breeding colony not far distant. The next colony to the 

 north is on Royal Shoal, Pamlico Sound, N. C, where about 250 birds 

 were nesting in 1909 (Philipp). The coast of northeastern Virginia 

 is the home of the largest colonies in the United States. Here the 

 birds breed commonly on most of the islands from Cobbs Island 

 (Harper) to Chincoteague (Knight). In 1902 about 2,000 birds were 

 nesting on the former. The birds still breed at Brigantine and on 

 Gull Island, N. J., a few in each place (Stone), and some 500 birds 

 near Stone Harbor (Carter). It is probable that a few pairs also still 



C BREEDING 



O OCCURRENCE IN SUMMER 



+ WINTERING 



■if- occurrence: in winter 

 +■ RESIDENT 



Fig. 25. — Laughing gull (Larus atricilla). 



breed around Great South Bay, Long Island (Eaton). Sixty years 

 ago on the islands off the Massachusetts coast the laughing gull was 

 a common breeder; now it is restricted to Muskeget Island, but the 

 colony there during the past few years has increased until in 1908 

 it was estimated to contain a thousand birds (Forbush). 



Only one colony of the laughing gull remains in the States north 

 of Massachusetts, and that, near Penobscot Bay, on the coast 

 of Maine, is reduced to scarcely a dozen individuals. Previous to 

 1870, the species nested at several places along the coast east to 

 the vicinity of Grand Manan,. and in the summer of 1856 Dr. Brvant 



