^6 Our Bird Friexds. 



Some individual Terns belonsrintr to a colony 

 brecdin'jf on a shingly beach haye been known to 

 cany quantities of pebbles on to the n'rass above 

 tide reach, and, after niakini;- a miniature beacli of 

 their own, hiy their e^u'^s upon it. This is un- 

 doubtedly very devcr, but, on tlic otht-r band, 

 there are Terns, like human hcini^s, tliat cannot 

 leave well alone: f<»r I once found souic ei^'gs, 

 belonging to a member of this lamily. lying on a 

 pavement of little blue mussel- shells, wliidi lonkcd 

 conspicuous on the golden-grey sand, and. in inrn. 

 showed uj) tin; stoue-coloured eggs and tlirii- lin»wn 

 and clK'stnut markings so distinctly tliat they conld 

 be seen trom (|ii't<' a di>tancr. 



liiiigcd PloNcfs do nnt. as a rnlo. indidgr in a 

 proper Host, bnt will sometimes, wlieii breeding on 

 a rocky shore, where there is very little sand (•!• 

 shingle, collect tiny sli«'lls and ])ebbles. and. ])laeinL:' 

 them at the bottom of a sliallnw < reviee. lay their 

 eggs U[)on the top of tliini. X«>t long ag<> I tnund 

 a nest belonging to this species made entirely of 

 v;ee sandstone pebbles which the bird had lifted 

 out ot the dry bed of a tiny streamlet and plaeed 

 on tile bank where there was nnthing but gTass. 

 This struck me as being a ease ot real wisdom, for 

 the stones were deposited at such a point as would 

 have been most likely to save the eggs iVom the 

 consequences of a Hood suddeidy descending the 

 channel of the stream. 



There are very few rules whicli are ne>t su[)[)lied 



