652 



STERNA MINUTA. THE LITTLE TERN. 



LESSER SEA-SWALLOW. 



Sterna minuta. Linn. Syst. Nat. I. 228. 



Sterna minuta. Lath. Ind. Om. II. 809. 



Sterna minuta. Flem. Brit. Anim. 144. 



Lesser Tern. Mont. Om. Diet, and Supplt. 



La Petite Hirondelle-de-mer. Sterna minuta. Tenun. Man. d'Ornith. 



II. 752. 

 Lesser Tern. Sterna minuta. Selby, Illustr. Brit. Ornith. II. 475. 

 Sterna minuta. Jenyns, Brit. Vert. Anim. 267. 



Bill about the same length as the head, light orange-yelloiv, 

 ivith the end black ; feet light orange-red ; ivings an inch 

 longer than the deeply-forked tail. Forehead ivhite ; upper 

 part of head, and nape, and loral spaces black; back and 

 wings very pale bluish-grey ; lower parts ivhite ; outer two 

 quills greyish-black, with the inner margin white. 



Maxe in Summer. — This, the smallest of our Terns, and 

 easily distinguishable from the other species, has the bill 

 slightly longer than the head, slender, nearly straight, much 

 compressed, tapering, extremely acute ; the upper mandible 

 with its dorsal line very slightly arched, the ridge gradually 

 narrowed to the end, the sides little convex, the edges sharp 

 and somewhat inflexed, the tip very slender; the nostrils 

 linear, parallel, basal, pervious ; the lower mandible with the 

 angle very narrow, the junction of the crura mesial, a little 

 prominent, the sides erect and slightly convex, the edges 

 sharp and inflexed, the tip very slender. 



The eyes rather small, as are the apertures of the ears. 

 Feet very small ; tibia bare for a small space ; tarsus about 

 seven-twelfths long, covered anteriorly with small scutella, 



