200 EGYPTIAN BIRDS 
It is a very lively little Gull; its flight is much 
lighter than the preceding, and when several are 
together they can hardly ever keep quiet for long, 
but from time to time give vent to their peculiar 
cry, which by some has been likened to the sound 
of laughter. 
Captain Shelley says that, in a year where there 
was a terrible scourge of locusts, these Gulls were 
present in large flocks busily engaged in devouring 
these mischievous insects. In that way, and in the 
ordinary scavenger work that they share with all 
other Gulls, they are of great use to the country and 
should be protected. 
I have seen them in ones and twos everywhere 
up and down the river, but the larger flocks are 
only to be seen at the great lakes of the Fayoum 
or along the coast, and I particularly remember, 
because of the weirdness of the surroundings, one 
occasion when I saw large flocks on the shores of 
the Red Sea. It was at Kosseir, and the coast 
there is alternately gently shelving sandy shore, 
and jutting-out, flat-topped rocky reefs. To one 
of these reefs I went as the tide was leaving them 
exposed, whilst flocks of Gulls and Waders were 
waiting for their evening meal. 
The rock plateau going right out to sea was a 
