Some Notes on the Herring Gull {Larus argentatus). — The evidence 
that there is no such bird as Larus argentatus smithsonianus continues 
to accumulate. Doubts of the validity of this subspecies have been 
expressed before, both orally and in print. {Cf Knight, List of Birds 
of Me., p. 19; Maine Sportsman, July, ’98, p. 13; Journal of the Me. 
Orn. Soc., Oct. 1899, p. 37). These records refer to the occurrence in 
Maine of specimens referable to L. argentatus , and finally question the 
existence of any subspecific differences between American and European 
specimens. While in Portland a short time ago I had occasion to visit 
the shop of a local taxidermist and noticed a large number of these 
birds which he had skinned for sale to milliners. After carefully exam¬ 
ining fully 100 specimens, which had been shot in Portland Harbor and 
vicinity, I was delighted to find ten specimens which were, as regards 
the first primaries, typical examples of L. argentatus. Three of the 
birds had the first primary entirely white at the tip without any trace 
of a black bar or dot, and the others had the black bar only slightly 
indicated. Other specimens had the black bar more complete, and a 
perfect series of gradations could be found between adult birds with 
only white on the apical part of the first primary and birds having a 
black bar half an inch wide near its extremity. The non-existence of 
the so-called subspecies L. a. smithsonianus seems to be completely 
demonstrated. At the same time I had the opportunity of examining a 
large number of Kittiwake Gulls and found a greater variation in their 
primaries than in those of the Herring Gull. In both cases specimens 
examined for comparative purposes were adult birds. •— Ora W. Knight, 
Bangor, Me. Attk, XVII, Jan., 1900, p ~p % . 
Some notes on the Herring Gull {Barns argentatus ). — The evidence 
that there is no such bird as Larus argentatus smithsonianus continues to 
accumulate. Doubts of the validity of this subspecies have been expressed 
before, both orally and in print. {Cf. Knight, Hist, of Birds of Me., p. 19; 
Maine Sportsman, July, 1898, p. 13; Journal of the Me. Orn. Soc., Oct. 
1899, p. 37). These records refer to the occurrence in Maine of speci¬ 
mens referable to L. argentatus , and finally question the existence of 
any subspecific differences between American and European specimens. 
While in Portland a short time ago I had occasion to visit the shop of a 
local taxidermist and noticed a large number of these birds which he had 
skinned for sale to milliners. After carefully examining fully 100 speci¬ 
mens, which had been shot in Portland Harbor and vicinity, I was 
delighted to find ten specimens which were, as regards the first prima¬ 
ries, typical examples of L. argentatus. Three of the birds had the first 
primary entirely white at the tip without any trace of a black bar or dot, 
and the others had the black bar only slightly indicated. Other speci¬ 
mens had the black bar more complete, and a perfect series of grada¬ 
tions could be found between adult birds with only white on the 
apical part of the first primary and birds having a black bar half an 
inch wide near its extremity. The non-existence of the so-called sub¬ 
species L. a. smithsonianus seems to be completely demonstrated. At the 
same time I had the opportunity of examining a large number of Kit¬ 
tiwake Gulls and found a greater variation in their primaries than in 
those of the Herring Gull. In both cases specimens examined for com¬ 
parative purposes were adult birds. — Ora W. Knight, Bangor , Me. 
Auk, XVII, April, 1900, p. tt$' 
