THE BIRD BOOK 



[76.] Bridled Tern. Sterna anaetheta. 



Range. — Found in tropical regions of both hem- 

 ispheres; casual or accidental in Florida. This 

 Tern is similar to the last except that the nape 

 is white and the white of the forehead extends 

 in a line over the eye. The Bridled Tern is com- 

 mon on some of the islands of the West Indies 

 and the Bahamas, nesting in company with the 



Black Tern 



Noddy 

 Black Skimmer 



Creamy white 



Sooty Terns and Noddies. The single egg is laid 

 on the seashore or among the rocks. It is creamy 

 white beautifully marked with brown and lilac. 

 Size 1.85 x 1.25. Data.— Bahamas, May 9, 1892. 

 Single egg laid in a cavity among the rocks. Col- 

 lector, D. P. Ingraham. 



77. Black Tern. Hydrochelidon nigra 

 surinamensis. 



Range. — Temperate America, breeding from the 

 middle portions of the United States northward 

 to Alaska; south in winter beyond the United 

 States Border. 

 The identity of these Terns cannot be mistaken 

 They are but ten inches in length; the whole head, neck and under parts are 

 black; the back, wings and tail are slaty and the under tail coverts are white. 

 Their dainty figure with their long slender wings gives them a grace and airi- 

 ness, if possible, superior to other species of the family. They are very active 

 and besides feeding upon all manner of marine 



crustacea, they capture many insects in the air. .^^Bb^L-2"-?*. 



They nest in large colonies in marshes, both along 

 the coast and in the interior, making a nest of 

 decayed reeds and grasses, or often laying their 

 eggs upon rafts of decayed vegetation which are 

 floating on he water. The nesting season com- 

 mences in May, they laying three eggs of a brown- 

 ish or greenish color, very heavily blotched with 

 blackish brown. Size 1.35 x .95. Data. — Winne- 

 bago City, Minn., May 31, 1901. Three eggs. Nest 

 made of a mass of weeds and rushes floating on 

 water in a swamp. Collector, R. H. Bullis. 



Deep greenish brown 



