Penobscot Bay, Maine.
1896  
June 24 (no 2)
(Little Spoon Island). I spent fully two hours photographing Gulls' 
nests and watching the birds. They collected into a scattered flock 
and soared or circled over me at a flight of 200 or more feet 
occasionally on descending lower. Sometimes they would all set 
their wings and move slowly against the light wind or 
remain nearly stationary breasting it - a beautiful sight. They would 
keep perfect silence for minutes at a time then one would 
start the cla - cla- cla- cleur, cleur, cle-ure cry which would 
be taken up by our after another until the air sang with 
their clamor. They also uttered the plaintive, monosyllabic wail 
to which, I happen, the name Sea-mew is due. It would be 
difficult to imagine a more utterly sad or rather hopeless cry. 
It is like the last despairing shrink of a drowning sailor[.] 
Whenever I found a nest and stood over or near it for some time 
I noticed that one of the Gulls would leave the nest and 
descending to a height of 60 ft. or less would come flapping quickly
towards me calling ha - ha - ha ; ha - ha - ha, very much like a 
Laughing Gull. Often he would come within fair gun shot before
sheering off when he would wheel sail off down wind & come 
again. I felt certain after witnessing this a number of times 
that the Gulls keep a close watch on the intruder & that when 
he finds a nest the bird to whom it belongs is quickly aware 
of the fact. Conary confirms this impression.
  There were no uniformly sooty birds in this colony but I saw 
several that were apparently as anxious as any that had patches 
of dusky above and dark barred tails.
  One Gull alighted on a dead tree & stood there for nearly 
half an hour. Whenever I left the portion of the island where 
the nests were the birds quickly settled on their eggs, once when
I went less than 200 yards away. Nearly all the nests were 
made of grass & weeds. They measured 12 to 14 inches across & 2 to 4 inches 
in depth of cup.