THE BLACK-BACKED GULL. 255 
upon the putrid mass. Tearing, tugging, and swal- 
lowing piece after piece, until he is surfeited, he lies 
down exhausted; but, owing to the great digestive 
power of his stomach, in a short time he is again 
on the wing to some w T ell-known isle, where thousands 
of young birds or eggs are to be found. There, with- 
out remorse at the screams of the parents, he begins 
leisurely to break open and devour, until he has again 
satisfied his craving appetite. But though so tyran- 
nical, he is yet a coward, and sneaks off at the ap- 
proach of the Skua, a much smaller but bold sea- 
bird, which is always ready to attack the relentless 
robber. 
Upon the western shores of Labrador, for an ex- 
tent of three hundred miles, this king of Gulls is 
found in great numbers in the breeding season. Tow- 
ard the commencement of Summer they arrive one 
by one, the older ones first, greeting with loud cries 
the first sight of their native land. With many bows 
and gesticulations the pairing proceeds, until, at the 
right time, they fly off to one of the many desert 
isles that line the shore, and build their nests beneath 
a projecting shelf, or in a wide cleft of a rock. They 
are formed of moss and sea-weeds, carefully arranged, 
being two feet in diameter, five or six inches in height, 
and lined with feathers and dry grass. Not more 
than three eggs are ever laid in one nest, which, like 
those of most other Gulls, afford good eating. When 
the young are five or six weeks old, they take to the 
water, uttering the same sounds as the old birds. 
Even at that early period they show great greediness 
