The American and European Herring Gulls. — In 1862, the late Dr. 
Coues separated the American Herring Gull as specifically distinct from 
the European Herring Gull, under the name Larus smitksonianus , on the 
basis of slight differences in general size, and in the size and form of the 
bill, but mainly on the small amount of white at the tips of the primaries. 
Later an attempt was made to show that these alleged differences were 
due to age (cf. Allen, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., II, pp. 194-196, April, 1871). 
As, however, Herring Gulls unquestionably referable to the Old World 
form have proved to be of more or less frequent occurrence in this 
country, together with many intermediates, both forms of the Herring 
Gull have been given a place in the A. O. U. Check-List, standing, 
respectively, as Larus argentatus and Larus argentatus smithsomanus. 
I have, however, never been convinced that my exposition of the case in 
1871 was not thoroughly sound. 
Although Larus smitksonianus, either as a species or subspecies, appears 
to have never received any recognition abroad, it was not again chal¬ 
lenged by American writers till 1898 and later, when Mr. O. W. Knight, 
after examination of a great number of adult American Herring Gulls 
shot at Portland, Maine, emphatically claimed the “non-existence of the 
so-called subspecies L. a. smitksonianus ” (cf Auk, XVII, Jan. 1900, pp. 63, 
64). A year later Dr. Dwight, on wholly different material, reached 
practically the same conclusion in his paper on ‘ The Sequence of Moults 
and Plumages of the Laridae ’ (Auk, XVIII, Jan. 1901, pp. 49-62). _ In 
referring to the white areas at the tip of the first primary in the American 
Herring Gull, and to the wide range of variation in these markings, 
which vary from two small distinct white areas to a single large apical 
white spot, he asks “Is the European bird always marked by one white 
area?” Owing to the absence of large series of European specimens in 
American museums, the question was not easy to answer. Hence, 
when an opportunity presented itself, in July, 19 01 , t° examine the 
series of these birds in the British Museum, through the courtesy 
of the officers of that grand institution, I eagerly availed myself of it. 
The result of my examination of this material may be briefly summarized 
as follows : 40 adult birds were examined ; 9 out of 15 specimens killed 
in the British Islands were of the smitksonianus type, and 6 of the 
argentatus type; of 16 specimens from various localities in North 
America, 4 were of the typical argentatus type and 12 of the smithsomanus 
type. Thus much more than half of the specimens killed in the British 
Islands were like the so-called smitksonianus type, and one fourth of the 
American specimens were of the so-called argentatus type. Most of the 
British examples, it should be added, were birds of apparently the second 
or third year, and the same is true of the American examples examined. 
From the foregoing it is evident that there can be but one conclusion 
in respect to the Herring Gulls of the two sides of the Atlantic; namely, 
that the extent and form of the white apical spots on the first primary vary 
with the age of the bird, being small and separated in birds that have just 
acquired adult plumage, and increase in size with age till, in a small 
percentage, consisting of probably very old birds, the two white spots at 
the tip of the first primary become merged into one, forming a single 
greatly lengthened white area ; that this is true of both European and 
American birds; and that the alleged characters of Larus smitksonianus 
are invalid, the supposed differences in the form and size of the bill being 
also variations due to age. — J. A. Allen, Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., New 
York City. Auk, XIX, July, 1902, P)>. *23. -)$H. 
