THE BIRD BOOK 



63. Gull-billed Tern. Gelochelidon nilotica. 



Range. — Found in North America along the Gulf Coast and on the Atlantic 

 Coast north to Virginia and casually farther. 



This is one of the largest of the Terns, 

 is 14 inches long, has a short, thick, black 

 bill and a short slightly forked tail; the 

 crown is black, mantle pearly gray, white 

 below. This species is very widely dis- 

 tributed, being found in Europe, Austra- 

 lia, Asia and Africa. They are known 

 locally as "Marsh Terns" where they 

 breed in immense numbers on some of 

 the marshes about the Gulf, particularly 

 in Texas. They also breed on many of 

 the islands along the Coast, rarely mak- 

 ing any nest, but laying the eggs in a 

 hollow in the sand. They nest most 

 abundantly in the latter part of May, 

 generally laying three eggs. They are 

 of a yellowish, grayish or greenish buff 

 color and are spotted with brown and lilac. Size 1.80 x 1.30. Data. — North- 

 ampton Co., Va., May 28, 1882. Three eggs laid on a mass of seaweed on marsh 

 above tide water. 



Pale greenish buf 



64. Caspian Tern. Sterna caspia. 



Range. — Like the preceding species, this bird is nearly cosmopolitan in its 

 range, in North America breeding from the Gulf Coast and Texas northward 

 to the Arctic Regions. 



This beautiful bird is the largest of the Tern family, being about 22 inches in 

 length, with the tail forked about 1.5 inches. The bill is large, heavy and 

 bright red; the crest, with which this and the next three species are adorned, 

 is black. The mantle is pale 



pearl and the under parts •». . 



white. These Terns some- _, * _ i . 



times nest in large colonies 

 and then again only a few 

 pairs will be found on an 

 island. In Texas, the breed- 

 ing season commences in 

 May, it being later in the 

 more northern breeding 

 grounds. They may be re- 

 garded as largely eastern 

 birds, as while they are com- 

 mon in the interior of the 

 country, they are rarely found 

 on the Pacific Coast. Two or 

 three eggs constitute a com- 

 plete set; these are laid on Grayish buff 

 the sand in a slight hollow scooped out by the birds. They vary from gray to 

 greenish buff, marked with brown and lilac. Size 2.60 x 1.75. Data. — Hat Is- 

 land, Lake Michigan, July 1, 1896. No nest. Two eggs in a hollow in the 

 gravel. Fully a thousand terns nesting on about one acre. Collector, Charles 

 L. Cass. 



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