cry when alarmed or angry; it is also called the
Black-headed Gull. They nest by thousands on the islands off the Gulf
Coast and along the South Atlantic States. The nest is placed on the
ground and is made of seaweed. Three, four and sometimes five eggs are
laid, of a grayish to greenish brown color, marked with brown and lilac.
Size 2.25 x 1.60. Data.--Timbalin Is., La., June 3, 1896. Three eggs.
Nest of drift grass thrown in a pile about 8 inches high, slightly
hollowed on top, in low marsh back of beach. Collector, E. A. McIlhenny.

[Illustration 049: Pale grayish brown.]
[Illustration: Laughing Gull.]
[Illustration: RING-BILLED GULL--Gray.]
[Illustration: deco.]
[Illustration: right hand margin.]

Page 48

59. FRANKLIN'S GULL. _Larus franklini._

Range.--Interior North America, breeding from middle United States
northward.

Like the last but smaller and with the primaries light. Underparts rosy
in breeding season. Nests very abundantly in the marshes of Minnesota
and northward. Nest made of grasses and placed in the marsh grass barely
above the surface of the water. Eggs same color as the last but the
markings more inclined to zigzag lines. Size 2.10 x 1.40. Data.--Heron
Lake, Minn., May 26, 1885. Nest of wet sedge stalks and rubbish placed
in a bunch of standing sedge in shallow water; at least five thousand
birds in rookery. Collector, J. W. Preston.

60. BONAPARTE'S GULL. _Larus philadelphia._

Range.--Breeds in the northern parts of North America; winters from
Maine and British Columbia to the southern border of the United States.

Smaller than the last; 14 inches long. Plumage similar, but bill slender
and black. They nest in great numbers on the marshes of Manitoba and to
the northward. The nests, of sticks and grass, are placed on the higher
parts of the marsh and the usual complement of three eggs is laid during
the latter part of June. The eggs are grayish to greenish brown, marked
with dark brown and lilac. Size 1.90 x 1.30.

[Illustration 050: Grayish brown.]
[Illustration: Franklin's Gull. Bonaparte's Gull.]
[Illustration: Pale grayish brown.]
[Illustration: left hand margin.]

Page 49

60.1. LITTLE GULL. _Larus minutus._

This Gull is the smallest of the family; it is a European bird, and has
accidentally strayed to our shores but a few times. Its plumage is
similar to that of the Bonaparte Gull but the bill is red. It breeds in
the marshes around the Baltic Sea, placing its nest of