THE GULLS AND ALLIED SPECIES. 283 



cast up by the sea. They all pursue shoals of fish in the open sea, 

 often to great distances from land. Their plumage is full, soft, close, 

 elastic, and well blended ; wings long, broad, and pointed ; the tail, 

 of twelve feathers, rounded and forked. 



The Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) approach the Terns in size, yet 

 have all the characteristics of the Gulls. However, they are of smaller 

 size than the latter, have more slender forms, and their feet and bills 

 are comparatively feebler. Thus we shall describe them under one 

 head, as they have the same generic characteristics. 



The Gulls are found in every country, on every coast, out at sea, 

 and sometimes even on fresh waters, lakes, and rivers. These birds 

 literally swarm in certain localities, where they devour every kind 

 of animal food, fresh or decomposed. If they notice the carcase of 

 any animal, either floating on the sea or cast up on the shore, it 

 soon becomes their prey, and is speedily consumed by these " sea 

 vultures/' as Buffon calls them. They gorge themselves to their very 

 throats; but their stomachs soon digest the rapidly-decomposing 

 animal diet. They may also be observed in search of fish skimming 

 over the surface of the water, their keen eyes anxiously scanning far 

 and near for this most favourite food. 



During the season they visit the breeding-places of other races to 

 feed upon their eggs or young. In spite of the piteous shrieks of the 

 parents and the plaintive cries of their progeny, the whole colony is 

 sacrificed to their gluttony; but, as they are always cowards, when- 

 ever these depredators notice the approach of a bird more courageous 

 than themselves, they retreat with all the celerity which their power 

 gives them. The sight of a Skua (Stercoraria) is sufficient to make 

 them disgorge their food. These water scavengers are, however, 

 frequently in want of food, especially during stormy weather. But 

 Nature, in her goodness, has well enabled them to endure hunger. 



Sea Gulls are found everywhere, but they are most numerous on 

 the flat and low sea-shores of the north, where the dead bodies of 

 whales and other large fish furnish them with abundant food. They 

 build their nests on inaccessible or desert islands in the northern seas, 

 where they are safe from man's intrusion, laying two or three eggs in 

 a hole scratched in the sand, or in the cleft of a rock. 



These birds are easily tamed, and soon take to domestic habits ; 

 but their flesh, which is hard and tough, is unfit for human food. In 

 order to render them eatable in cases of emergency, sailors, after 

 having skinned them, hang them up, and leave them exposed to the 

 evening dew for two or three nights. By this means some of the 

 disagreeable smell possessed by the carcase is got rid of. 



