LITTLE GULL. 263 



an immature bird, which I saw at the Rectory at East 

 Blatchington. It was brought to him alive, and covered 

 with wet blood, by a coastguardsman who had shot it at 

 Seaford. It had, however, quite recovered and was very 

 tame, readily taking raw meat from the hand, and would 

 scold at a great rate if not attended to. It had learned to 

 beg for food, and was just getting into mature plumage, 

 when it was accidentally killed by the slamming of a door 

 on June 16th, 1850. A coloured drawing of this specimen 

 was sent to Mr. Knox by Mrs. Rickman, of Lewes. See O. 

 R. p. 254, where is mentioned another example which was 

 shot by a fisherman near Brighton on November lOtb, 1853, 

 and preserved by Mr. Swaysland. Mr. Jeffery (p. n.) records 

 one, now in Chichester Museum, shot December 1st, 1868 ; 

 another at Chidham, January 1st, 1870 j one at Selsey, 

 February 1874; a fourth at Fishbourne, December 1876; a 

 fifth at Pagham, January 1877 ; and a sixth at Itchenor on 

 December 1st of the same year. Mr. Dresser (vol. viii. 

 p. 378) states that it was very common at Novaya Ladoga 

 in 1852, breeding on small floating islands in a morass. In 

 the stomachs were found insects which they caught in the 

 air, making graceful and quick evolutions, in which they 

 almost surpassed the Goatsucker. In a marsh in the same 

 neighbourhood were found by Mr. Meves nests similarly 

 situated among low plants, often quite close together, of 

 which some were placed on the edge, and others in the 

 centre of the islands, and composed of flags, scirpus, and 

 grass-straws, some carefully, others carelessly constructed. 

 On examining the birds it was found that they had been 

 feeding principally on small fishes and on a few insects. 



