GULLS 



(60.1) LITTLE GULjl (Larus 

 minutus). Accidental on Long Island. 

 An European species. 



(61) Rhodostethia rosea 



(Gr., rose breast). 



ROSS'S GULL; ROSY GULL; 

 WEDGE-TAILED GULL. Ad. in 

 summer — Plumage as shown. Notice 

 the small black bill and the wedge- 

 shaped tail; the primaries are wholly 

 white exxept for the black edge of the 

 outer one; the eyelids are red. In 

 winter, they have no black collar 

 nor pink blush on the under parts. 

 L., 12.50; W., 9.50; T., 4.00, the 

 middle feathers about one inch longer 

 than the outer; B., .50. 



Range — Arctic regions. Breeds 

 in northern Siberia. Winters from 

 northern Alaska to Greenland. 



animal matter, while in summer they devour a great many 

 grasshoppers and other insects, often catching them in the air. 



Probably the most remarkable of this interesting family 

 are ROSS'S GULLS. They are the most boreal of all birds, 

 never coming south of the Arctic Circle even during winter. 

 They breed on the coast and islands of northeastern Siberia. 



According to Murch (Auk, April, 1899), large flocks of 

 them may be seen about Point Barrow, Alaska, during 

 September, but they do not remain for any length of time. 

 In all probability, like the polar whale, they spend most of 

 their time about the loose edges of the pack ice well out at sea. 



They still remain one of the very rarest species of birds 

 in collections, not because they are uncommon but because 

 they can be obtained only in such high latitudes. In sum- 

 mer the under parts have a very beautiful rosy blush, a tint 

 that is very evanescent, completely fading in a few months 

 if exposed to the Ught. A feature that will readily distin- 

 guish this species in any plumage is the fact that it is the 



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