130 BULLETIN OF WISCONSIN NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. VOL. 4, NO. 4. 
all-prevailing sound. English writers not infrequently mention 
the mewing of the gulls, but I had never before heard any number 
of gulls whose prevailing sound was so w r ell described by that 
term. 
Frequently the general clamor would be dominated by a 
peculiar cry which I put into words as "yeh, yeh, yeh" rapidly 
repeated and increasing in vehemence to the utmost capabilities of 
the gull, when it quickly ceased. Usually a few seconds after one 
began another joined, until often there were a half dozen birds 
screeching at once, and occasionally this number would be in- 
creased to a score or more. This is a definite vocal effort, always 
produced in its peculiar attitude. Probably a dozen or fifteen of 
my photographs show one or more birds executing it, and some 
show six or eight engaged. Fig. 4 of Plate 2 shows a close front 
view of a couple of "challenging" gulls. Any thing that startles 
the gull without producing a panic, or the proximity of fighting 
birds, or even at times the approach of others seems to be sufficient 
cause for its production. The bird stretches its neck downward, 
opens its bill widely and begins the call, then with a jerky sort of 
start it stiffly raises its outstretched neck, usually to an angle of 
about forty-five degrees. Generally, almost invariably, the head, 
neck, body and tail are all held in practically the same line and in a 
remarkably stiff manner. The whole operation is so machine like 
in its rigidity and precision of motion that the gulls appear like 
a lot of automatons. If the challenge, or "scream of defiance" 
as Herrick terms it, is not answered it may cease in perhaps a 
quarter of a minute, but if answered it is continued to about 
double that time. 
Another peculiar and definite combination of attitude and voice 
at once reminded me so of descriptions of the "dance" of the 
Albatross at Laysan that I at once entered it in my notes as a 
dance. It lacks much of the complexity of the Albatross dance, 
in fact, as I saw it many times repeated, it is but a single stage 
in that remarkable performance. A comparison of the birds 
in the foreground of Fig. 2, Plate 2, with Fisher's "First 
steps in favorite dance," Fig. 25, Plate 6, will show the 
similarity. Two adults may be standing near together when 
one will stoop, hold its neck nearly horizontal, its bill pointed down, 
move its head in and out from its body, and slightly up and down, 
