172 CARNEGIE INSTITUTION OP WASHINGTON. 



July 17. — The following birds were seen about the city of Key West to-day: 

 man-of-war bird, laughing gull, great white heron, boat-tailed grackle, Florida 

 ground dove, gray kingbird, brown pelican, turkey buzzard. 



July 18. — Between Key West and Boca Grande, the following birds were 

 noted: man-of-war bird, laughing gull, royal tern. 



On Boca Grande Key we saw great white heron, green heron, Florida clap- 

 per rail, gray kingbird. 



Between Boca Grande and Rebecca Light, a couple of royal terns only were 

 observed. 



Off East Key, Tortugas, we noted least terns, sooty terns, and noddy terns. 



At the Tortugas all the birds observed belong to the sea or beach-roving 

 type. 



On Loggerhead Key, sooty and noddy terns could be seen flying about at all 

 times of the day. A bunch of least terns, varying from 10 to 25, frequented the 

 hook of the northern sandspit daily, where they were often joined by royal 

 terns, of which as many as 14 were seen at one time in their company. There 

 is an interesting feature connected with the least-tern group at this point, 

 for here they were constantly subjected to annoyance by the ghost crabs 

 {Ocypoda albicans Bosc). Large members of this species would sidle up to the 

 resting birds and, in spite of the vigorous wing beating to which they would 

 be subjected by the tern, would force the latter from the place it was occupy- 

 ing. I am at a loss to account for this persistent persecution. If the least 

 tern had been breeding at this place, one might be led to believe that the crabs 

 were after the young fledglings, but since the terns were not breeding here, 

 this does not seem possible. It likewise seems unreasonable to believe that 

 these ghost crabs had acquired this habit in another place where the terns 

 might be breeding and had later migrated to this sandspit, for ghost crabs usu- 

 ally stick pretty close to their burrows. I do not believe that the crab is 

 capable of overcoming an adult bird. 



On this sandspit, also, we saw, on several occasions, a flock of 7 least sand- 

 pipers. Man-of-war birds also occasionally passed over the island. At the 

 southern end of the island a few least terns made their home. It is quite 

 possible that they may have bred here, although I was unable to find evidences 

 of young birds. It will be remembered that a single nest with eggs was dis- 

 covered here last year. 



On the 23d a green heron was seen at the southern end, and the following 

 day a Ward's heron, which concludes the Loggerhead list. 



Bird Key contained its usual host of breeding noddy and sooty terns and 

 a large assemblage of man-of-war birds, which frequented the stakes and 

 stumps and wreckage on this key. The stakes between Bird Key and Garden 

 Key were occupied by a couple of red-footed boobies, as in the past year, the 

 royal terns being fewer in number than in the earlier part of the season. 



Garden Key, on the various visits made to it, revealed an osprey, and 

 least terns, sooties, and noddies, the last three always on wing. 



Bush Key has been united with Long Key since the hurricane of October 

 1910. The latter stretches eastward to the outer edge of the reef, and this 

 complex forms a habitat possessing all the requirements to render shore birds 

 happy. We found this by far the most interesting land element of the entire 

 Tortugas group, excepting, of course, Bird Key, this year, for here a colony of 

 probably 200 common terns formed a rookery on the rough coral shore of the 

 eastern end of the island. Their young birds of various ages could be seen at 

 all times. The least terns, too, were breeding all over the sandy beaches on 

 the part which formerly constituted Bush Key, and here we found a few eggs 

 and young of various stages. One young bird was discovered with one wing 



