346 
YEETEBRATA. 
larvae, which, in the venial season, the bounty of nature provides for the sustenance of myriads 
of the feathered race. 
"On the Jersey side of Delaware Bay, in the neighborhood of Fishing Creek, about the middle 
of May, the Black-headed Gulls assemble in great multitudes, to feed upon the remains of the 
king crabs which the hogs have left, or upon the spawn which those curious animals deposit in 
the sand, and which is scattered along the shore by the waves. At such times, if any one ap- 
proach to disturb them, the Gulls will rise up in clouds, every individual squalling so loud that 
the roar may be heard at the distance of two or three miles. 
"It is an interesting spectacle to behold this species when about recommencing their migra- 
tions. If the weather be calm, they will rise up in the air, spirally, chattering all the while to 
each other in the most sprightly manner, their notes at such times resembling the singing of a 
hen, but far louder, changing often into a hazo, ha^ ha, ha, haw ! the last syllable lengthened out 
like the excessive laugh of a negro. When mounting and mingling together, like motes in the 
sunbeams, their black heads and wing-tips, and snow-white plumage, give them a very beautiful 
appearance. After gaining an immense height, they all move off, with one consent, in a direct 
line toward the point of their destination. 
" This bird breeds in the marshes. The eggs are three in number, of a dun clay color, thinly 
marked with small, irregular touches of a pale purple, and pale brown ; some are of a deeper dun, 
with larger marks, and less tapering than others ; the egg measures two inches and a quarter by 
one inch and a half." 
Other species are as follows : Sabine's Gull, L. Sabini: Bonaparte's Gull, L. Bonapartii : 
the Masked Gull, L. capis- 
tratus: the American Gull, 
L. zonorrhynchus and camis : 
the Kittiwake Gull, L. tri- 
dactylus: the Ivobt Gull, 
L. ehurneus : the Iceland 
Gull, L. Islandicus: the 
Herring G\jJ.j., L.argentatus : 
the CUNEATE-TAILED GuLL, L. 
Rossii ; and the Glaucous 
GvLh, L.(/laticus : all found in 
Europe and North America. 
The LesserBlack-backbd 
Gull, L.fuscus, and the Lit- 
tle Gull, X. minutus, belong- 
to Europe. 
Besides the preceding, the 
Smithsonian Catalogue has the following: the Glaucous-winged Gull, L. glaucescens : the 
White-winged Gull, L. leucopterus : the Gray-winged Gull, L. chalcopterus : the Western 
Gull, L. occidentaUs : the California Gull, L. Californicus : the Ring-billed Gull, Z. Dela- 
warensis : and Suckley's Gull, L. SucMeyi: all found in American waters. 
Genus LESTRIS : Lestris. — This includes several species of gulls, to which the name of Squa 
is given. The Common Skua, Z. cataractes, is twenty-four inches long ; dark brown above ; 
clove-brown beneath. It is an active, vigorous, and daring bird, and is constantly occupied in 
harassing the true gulls, which are of a more listless and timid nature. When it sees one of them 
has captured a fish, it makes a fierce attack, and obliges it, through fear, to disgorge its prey, upon 
which the skua darts upon it and seizes it before it reaches the water. This bird does not asso- 
ciate in groups, but lives in pairs ; it breeds on the rocks, and lays three eggs. It is found through- 
out the seas of Northern Europe. 
Other species are the Pomerine Skua, Z. pomarinus : Richardson's Skua, L. Richardsonii : 
Buffon's Skua, X. Buffonii : all found in Europe and America. 
The following allied species are given in the Smithsonian Catalogue : the White-headed Gull, 
THE MASKED GULL. 
