034 BLACK TERN. 



September iS86. Although it occasionally wanders to the south of 

 Norway, it is not known to breed north of about lat. 60° in the 

 Baltic, the Gulf of Finland or Russia ; but over the rest of the 

 Continent it is abundant in suitable localities down to the Mediter- 

 ranean ; and it also nests in the marshes of North Africa. In winter 

 it has been obtained as far south as Loango on the west and Abyssinia 

 on the east ; but all the specimens recorded under the name of 

 H. nigra from Damara-land, or the Transvaal, have proved to be 

 H. kiicoptera, the next species. In Asia, the Black Tern cannot 

 be traced beyond Western Turkestan, and there is no authentic 

 record from India or China. In America, from Canada in summer 

 to Chile in winter, its representative is H. siirinamensis, the adults 

 of which have the upper and under-parts deep black, and much 

 white on the carpal joints, while even the young are darker than 

 those of the Old World species. 



From about the third week in May this bird may be found in 

 colonies on wet marshes or by shallow pools, making its nest of 

 decayed plants on heaps of wrack which rise and fall with the water, 

 or on the firmer hummocks of the bog. The eggs, 3 in number, are 

 ochreous or olive-green in ground-colour, boldly blotched with dark 

 brown : measurements i'45 by i in. The Black Tern feeds chiefly 

 on aquatic insects, many of which — such as dragon-flies — it takes on 

 the wing, and Mr. F. S. Mitchell has watched it swooping down 

 upon the field-crickets {Achefa campestris) during their momentary 

 appearance at the entrances of their burrows ; it is also very partial 

 to leeches, and will take small fish &c. The note is a shrill crick, 

 crick. 



The adult in nuptial dress (figured in the foreground) has the head 

 and neck dark lead-grey, nearly black on the crown and nape ; back, 

 wings and tail slate-grey (the last slightly forked) ; throat, breast and 

 belly dark lead-grey ; under wing-coverts pale grey ; vent white ; bill 

 black ; legs and feet short, and reddish-brown in colour. Females 

 have usually paler under-parts than males. Length 9'6 in. (bill i"25), 

 wing 8 "5 in. After the moult, which begins towards the end of July, 

 the forehead, throat and nape are white, as are also the under-parts 

 for a short time, though they are usually barred with grey. The 

 young bird (in the background) is mottled with brown on the head 

 and mantle ; but by the following spring the upper parts have become 

 lead-grey, with a darker line remaining along the carpal joint. The 

 full dress is not acquired till the second spring, when breeding takes 

 place. 



