STERNA CANTIACA, SANDWICH TERN. 673 



STEENA (THALASSEUS) CANTIACA, Gm. 



Saiulwich Tern. 



Sterna cantiaca, Gm., Syst. Nat. i, 1788, 606.— Temm., Man. 1815, 479.— Stfph., Gen. Zool. 

 xiii, 147.— Jen., Man. 1835, 265.— Eyt., Cat. Br. B. 1836, 54.— Keys. & Blas., 

 Wirb. Eur. 1840, 97.— Naum., V. D. s, 1840, 51, pi. 250.— Schl., Rev. Crit. 1844, 

 129 ; Mus. P.-B. Stenm, p. 5.— Gray, Gen. of B. iii, 1849, 658 ; List Br. B. 1863, 

 239.— AuD., Oru. Biog. iii, 1835, 531, pi. 279 ; Syu. 1839, 317 ; B. Am. vii, 1844, 

 87, pi. 431.— DeKay, N. Y. F. ii, 1844, 303, pi. 124, f. 274.— Tunxu., B. E. Pa. 

 1869. 47 (New Jersey ; straggler).— Scl. & Salv., P. Z. S. 1871, 569.— Allex., 

 Am. Nat. iii, 1870, 644 (Massachusetts).— Coues, Key, 1872, 320.— Pelz., Orn. 

 Bras. 324 (Brazil). 



Thalasseus caiitiacus, Boie, Isis, 1822, 563.— Bp., List, 1838, 61.— Blas., J. f. O. 1866, 81 

 (locates nnhilosa, Sparrm., here). 



Actoclielklan cantiacus, Kaup, Sk. Ent. Eur. Thierw. 1829, 31. 



(?) Sterna africana, Gm., Syst. Nat. i, 1788, 605.— Lath., lud. Orn. ii, 1790, 805 (uncertain). 



(?) Sterna striata, Gm., Syst. Nat. i, l7^^8, 009.— Lath., Ind. Orn. ii, 1790, 807 (uncertain). 



Sterna hoiisii, Lath., Ind. Oru. ii, 1790, 806 (:=cantiaca, Gm.).— Leach, Cat. 1816, 41. — 

 Feem., Br. An. 1828, 142.— Nutt., Man. ii, 1834, 276.— Macgil., Man. ii, 1842, 230. 



Sterna columhiua, Schrk. {Fide Blas.) 



"Sterna naria, Bewick, Br. B. ii, 1804, 207." {Gray.) 



Sterna stuherica, Bechst., Naturg. Dent, iv, 679. 



Sterna canescens, Meyer, Tasch. Dent. Vog. ii, 458. 



Tlialasseus canescens et caiuUcans, Brehm, V. D. 1831, 776, 777. 



Sterna acnffarida, Cab., Pr. Best. Soc. ii, 1847, 257. — Lawr., B. N. A. 1858, 860. — Bry.,. 

 P'r. Best. Soc. vii, 1859, 134 (Bahamas). 



Thalasseiis aciijlaridus, Coues, Pr. Phila. Acad. 1862, 540.— Coues, Ibis, 1864, .389 (Central 

 America). — Salv., Ibis, 1866, 198 (the same).— Gundl., Repert, 1866, 392.— 

 L.WVR., Ann. Lye. N. Y. viii, 1866, 299 (New York) ; ix, 210 (Yucatan).- Coues, 

 Pr. Ess. Inst, v, 1868, 60 (New England).— Coues, Pr. Bost. Soc. xii, 1868, 126 

 (South Carolina).— Coues, Pr. Phila. Acad. 1871, 42 (North Carolina). 



Hah. — Atlantic coast of North America to Southern New England. Bahamas ; Cuba ; 

 Jamaica ; ranging into Central America (both coasts). Honduras, breeding {Salcin). 

 South into Brazil {Pelzeln). 



Adult, breeding plnmage. — Bill ranch longer than the he.ad, exceeding in length the 

 tarsus, middle toe and claw together ; quite slender and attenuated for this genus, the 

 tip excessively acute. The convexity of the culmen, from tip to base, is regular, but 

 very slight. The commissure is gradually declinato-convex throughout its whole 

 length. The outline of the mandibular crura is decidedly concave ; that of the gonys 

 about straight. An eminentia symphysis is hardly appreciable. The submental or 

 intercrural space is very short and extreruely narrow, the feathers only covering its 

 posterior half. Nasal groove very long, narrow, not deep, extending more than iialf 

 the length of the bill, and sul)siding at the tomia. Both mandibles are marked with 

 obli(iue longitudinal stria-. The outline of the feathers on the bill is as usual in this 

 subfamily. Wings of moderate length, of ordinary shape ; the primaries quite broad 

 to within a short distance of their rounded, not very narrow nor acute, tips. The 

 formation of the tail is exactly as in reuia. The feet are (juite slender, moderately 

 compressed, anteriorly scutcllate, laterally and posteriorly reticulate, as usual in the 

 subfamily. Webs moderately incised for this genus ; relative proportions of the toes 

 as in other species. Claws all long, strong, arched, acute, the iuuer edge of tin; middle 

 one greatly dilated. 



J}iil lilack ; the tip for .} to J of an inch bright yellow, shari)ly defined against tho 

 black; "inside of mouth deep blue." Feet dull black. I'ilcum and occipital crest 

 glossy black, with a tinge of green ; the color extending, just below the eyes, but leav- 

 ing a space along the side of the mandible white to the extremity of the feathers. The 

 mantlt! is exceedingly light pearl-blue, fading on the rump and upper tail-coverts into 

 pure white ; but the rectrices themselves have a slight shade of inarly bluish. The 

 ]irimaries are colored exactly as in rajia. On tlu; inner web of the lirst tlie black s])ace 

 is broad and deep in coliu-; when about It inches from the apex of tlie quill it iiuite 

 suddenly grows wider, so as to exclude the white portion from tho tip altogether, 'i'he 

 second, tliinl, and fourth jMimnries have the sanii^ general i)attern, liut tlu' white runs 

 up further on the central jiortion tiiaii on the edge of the web, so that toward its end 

 it receives a narrow edging of blackish. The other prinuiries have no blackish, but 

 arc ^^imply pearl-blue, with broad white margins along the whole length of their inuec 

 wobs. The outer primaries are all heavily silvered when the <|i)ills are new. 



Dimensions (if the adnlt. — Length, 15 to 16 inches ; e.\tent, ; wing, from the carpus, 



12.50; tail, 6; depth of emargination, 2.35; bill, along eulmeu, 2.25; along gape, 3; 

 its height at base, 0.48; width, ditto, 0.37; length of rami from feathers on side of 



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