. Birds of North Carolina . Fig. 8. Herring Glll. These large gulls are very common about the harbors and the lower reaches ofmany of our rivers from September to April. They often come clcse to the wharvesof the sea-coast towns to gather fragments of food floating on the water. Passen-gers of vessels find amusement in watching the gulls following in the wake, con-tending for the scraps of food thrown overboard. Often they feed upon fish andother animal matter cast up by the waves. In the Northern States they fly farinland and eat meadow-mice as well as grasshoppers and other insects. They hav
. Birds of North Carolina . Fig. 8. Herring Glll. These large gulls are very common about the harbors and the lower reaches ofmany of our rivers from September to April. They often come clcse to the wharvesof the sea-coast towns to gather fragments of food floating on the water. Passen-gers of vessels find amusement in watching the gulls following in the wake, con-tending for the scraps of food thrown overboard. Often they feed upon fish andother animal matter cast up by the waves. In the Northern States they fly farinland and eat meadow-mice as well as grasshoppers and other insects. They havea peculiar way of feeding upon clams. Discovering one which has been exposedby the falling tide, the bird grasps it with its feet and, rising aloft, drops it uponthe hard-packed sand, for the evident purpose of causing the shell to break by the 30 EiRDS OF XORTH CAROLINA impact. If the first attempt fails to produce the desired result, the jjerformance isrepeated. Pearson once observed a Herring Gull at Beaufort make si.\t
Size: 2088px × 1197px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookauthorpearsontgilbertthomasgilbert18731943, bookcentury1900
