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(62) Xema sabina 



(Sab.) 



SABINE'S GULL; FORK-TAIL- 

 ED GULL. Ad. in summer — Plum- 

 age shown. Notice that the small 

 black bill has a yellow tip, the feet 

 are blackish and the eyelids orange. 

 The slaty hood is bordered with black; 

 the edges of the wings are also black 

 along the shoulders. In winter it 

 has neither the hood nor collar, but 

 the head has dusky touches on the 

 auriculars and crown. Itn. — Simi- 

 lar to the winter adult, but with 

 mottling and barring of dusky on 

 the head and back; tail with a termi- 

 nal bar of black. L., 13.50; W., 

 10.25; T., 5.00, forked 1.25; B., i.oo. 



Range — Breeds within the Arctic 

 Circle. Migrates on both coasts of 

 United States and casually through 

 the interior. Winters in Peru. 



only known gull that has a wedge-shaped or cuneate tail, 

 the feathers gradually decreasing in length from the middle 

 to the outer ones. 



Similarly, SABINE'S GULLS may always be identified 

 by their forked tails, the outer feathers being about an 

 inch longer than the middle ones. While not as boreal as 

 Ross's Gulls, they nest within the Arctic Circle in America, 

 Europe and Asia. During migrations, they occur on both otu: 

 coasts and to some extent in the interior, as they wing their 

 way to their winter quarters in Peru. 



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