STEKNA. 327 



During a trip to Lord Howe Island, four hundred and twenty miles to the north-east of 

 Sydney, and about three hundred miles due east of Port Stephens, New South Wales, this 

 species was lirst noted about thirty miles from the above island. Gradually as we f,'ot nearer, 

 the birds became more common, untd we could see many hundreds of them on the wing, at 

 North Ridge, and thousands nesting on the adjacent Admiralty Ivocks. I have previously 

 described Great Admiralty Kock, when dealing with Sula cyanops,'' so there is no need to make 

 a further reference to it, except as a breeding ground of the piesent species, and especially as 

 it is here reproduced from a photograph taken by Mr. P. R. Pedley on the occasion of my visit. 

 On the 15th October, 1910, when our party from Sydney examined this breeding ground, the 

 whole of the upper portion of the island, where level enough, whether among knee-high grass 

 tussocks, under large bushes, sandy soil, or bare rock, was tenanted by probably hundreds of 

 thousands of Sooty Terns. About one-third was on the wmg, mostly flying just over head, and 

 uttering their angry notes at our intrusion. The remainder were either sitting on an egg, 

 mostly incubated, or a recently hatched young one, the nests averaging from two to three feet 

 apart, although many were much closer. Some of the birds left their charges immediately we 

 got near them, but a very large number remained sitting, turning their heads in all directions, 

 and uttering an incessant " ka, ka, ka," while being removed and examined. Almost invariably, 

 amouf^st the countless number of eggs examined, one was laid for a sitting, but I alone found 

 live pairs of eggs, on three of which the birds were sitting, although in no instance did I find 

 more than one young one. On drawing an islander's attention to this fact, he remarked that the 

 eggs had probably been rolled together. This might have been so on the bare flat rock or 

 sandy soil, but this would have been impossible in two instances, where the two eggs were 

 deposited at the foot of grass tussocks, and each nesting-place, although comparatively close 

 together, was, by the height of the grass tussock, entirely isolated from one another. In very 

 few instances was there even any attempt at nest-building, and that only consisted of a small 

 quantity of rubbish or debris, scraped around the egg. In this vast breeding colony, on the 

 higher part of the island, and seated close together, were Masked Gannets (Sida cyanops) sitting 

 on from one to three fresh eggs, and on the sides of the island a few Noddies (A nous stoUdns), 

 each sitting on one fresh egg. We brought away two bucketsfull of eggs, which consisted chiefly 

 of those of the Sooty Tern. A great number were much incubated, in fact on arrival at our 

 quarters two hours later three of the eggs had hatched out. 



On Lord Howe Island one sees the Sooty Tern Hying all day long, in small scattered flocks 

 oj four or five, sometimes singly, about fifty or sixty feet over head, or over the waters of the 

 lagoon. They usually Hew straight in the one direction, from the south-west to the breeding 

 grounds in the north-east, on North Ridge, and the adjacent Admiralty Islets, and as a rule kept 

 well out of harm's way, their demeanour being exactly the reverse to the low hovering flight 

 when near their nesting-place, or descending into a shoal of small fish. To some of the Lord 

 Howe Islanders " Wide-awake egging," as it is locally called, forms a true " harvest of the sea," 

 for it is on Great Admiralty Rock that most of the eggs are collected, and it is only possible to 

 land there in favourable weather, our party being a fortnight on Lord Howe Island before being 

 able to do so. I was informed by the islanders that the laying season usually commences in 

 September, and that eggs are collected to the latter end of October, or middle of November, the 

 duration of the laying season varying according to the number of times the birds are robbed, or 

 rather an infinitesimal portion of them, for only a comparatively few birds are deprived of their 

 treasures on one of five islands, in addition to those breeding at North Ridge. To ensure getting 

 fresh eggs a space is cleared of all eggs, and a visit paid to it again a day or two later. In 

 addition to the breeding place at North Ridge, I was shown alow point near there where a small 

 colony of these birds laid one season, but so heavy a tribute was laid upon the birds by th 



e 



* See antea. Vol. III., pp. 345-7. 



