264 BIRDS OF BERMUDA, 



left behind. One was shot as far north as the coast of 'Soysl Scotia, 

 after a violent gale from the south, on the 4th September, 1870. I saw 

 this bird in the Halifax Museum. The excellent accounts of the habits 

 and nidification of this species given by Mr. Hurdis and Colonel Wed- 

 derburn have left me but little to say. The single egg, which in color- 

 ing is not unlike that of a Kestrel, is deposited in holes in the rocks, 

 always in those which have a flooring of sand, preference being given to 

 steep and overhanging cliifs on the south shore and the islands about 

 Castle Harbor. A few pairs nest on the northern shore, where the cliffs 

 are much lower. Sometimes one can see the sitting bird's long tail- 

 feathers protruding from the nest ; while in another case the nest may 

 be so far in, horizontally, that one can onlj- tell there is one by the 

 harsh grating cry of the disturbed occupant. Both male and female 

 sit, fighting vigorously with their formidable bills in defense of their 

 home. The young also show fight; in fact, the species is peculiarly 

 fierce and untamable. Three young ones I kept alive for about two 

 months maintained their savage nature till the last, refusing to feed 

 themselves, striking viciously at any one who approached them, and 

 even at one another. Their flight is i^eculiar, but graceful, and they 

 never seem tired of their perpetual wheeling and maneuvering. They 

 take beautiful headers, like a Tern or Gannet, in pursuit of small fish. 

 It is rare to meet with a specimen possessing two good long central tail- 

 feathers; one is generally smaller and shorter than the other. Some 

 of these feathers are of a lovely orange-pink. They get rubbed off 

 during incubation, and may be picked up near the breeding places. 

 Two broods are reared, fresh eggs being found as early as the 10th 

 April, and again at the end of June ; there are intermediate examples, 

 probably laid by birds whose first nests have been visited by the 

 spoiler. That these birds revisit their breeding stations year after year 

 is, I think, clearly shown by the following circumstance: Mr. Bartram, 

 by way of experiment, slit the two webs of one foot, and cut off one or 

 two claws, of a young bird in a nest near his house, ^ext year this 

 bird turned up again, and made its nest close to the same spot. This 

 attachment to the family residence is, I fancy, far from unusual with 

 migratory birds. Swallows and other familiar visitors to England are 

 known to possess it in a marked degree. On a calm day the bright 

 greenish blue tint of the Atlantic waters, as they gently rise and fall 

 above the white sands below, is reflected on the glossy white breasts 

 and under parts of the Tropic- birds in a most remarkable manner as 



