BRITISH BIRDS 



The two or three eggs are laid in a nest made of sea-weed and grasses, and in 

 ground-colour are dull white or pale drab, with streaks and blotches of deep 

 brown. 



In winter the head and neck are mostly white, with dark streaks of grey. 



THE GREAT BLACK-HEADED GULL. 



Larus ichthya'etus, Pallas. 

 Plate 73. 



An example of this large Gull, the only one recorded in the British Islands, was 

 shot near the mouth of the Exe, Devonshire, in the end of May or beginning of 

 June 1859. It breeds on the shores and islands of the Caspian Sea and eastwards 

 through Central Asia to Turkestan and Tibet, whilst in winter it wanders south- 

 wards to the Eastern Mediterranean, Asia Minor, India, and Ceylon. Little 

 appears to be known about its breeding habits. According to Dresser's Manual 

 of Palcearctic Birds, the eggs are "dull stone-drab in ground-colour, streaked and 

 blotched with light and dark umber-brown." 



The sketches for the specimen in the plate were taken from a live bird, at one 

 time in the Zoological Gardens of London. 



In winter the head is white, with dark streaks. 



THE COMMON GULL. 

 Larus canus, Linnaeus. 

 Plate 72. 



The so-called Common Gull is only plentiful in England during the winter 

 season and in spring, though it has been known to nest on the Fame Islands, 

 Northumberland : it moves northwards to breed on the shores and fresh-water lochs 

 of Scotland, and also nests in some localities in Ireland. After the breeding 

 season, it is generally distributed on the coasts as well as inland throughout the 

 three kingdoms. 



The Common Gull has a wide range over Northern Europe and Asia, migrating 

 from the colder parts of its habitat in winter, when its visits extend to the Persian 

 Gulf, Japan, and China. 



66 



