72 



TWO ATLANTIC COAST ISLANDS 



hard to say; but there eau be no donbt that once it lias 

 released its contents, it must l)e disposed of as (juickly as 

 possible. 



The chicks seem to appear on successive days, and to 

 leave the nest when a day or two old. They are fed on small 

 fish and doubtless other forms of aquatic life, which, at first, 

 may be partially digested by the parent bird. ^^Hiether 

 or not each parent finds its own chicks when tlie beach 

 becomes alive with hungry youngsters, cannot be confirmed 

 definitely, though tliere is evidence to show not only that the 

 old birds recognize their offspring, but that the latter know 

 their parents. 



So singular in form is the bill of the adult Skimmer, that 

 Ruff on described it as an '* awkward and defective instru- 

 ment"; a somewhat sur])rising conclusion to ])roceed from 

 so learned a natui-alist, and one which Wilson ])iououuced 

 an "impiety." With the lower mandible averaging half an 

 inch longer than the upper, and with both so thin and flexible 



