154 LARID.E. 



N. Amer. ii. p. 192 (1884) ; A. 0. U. Check-l. N. Amer. B. p. 97 

 (1886) ; Ridgw. Man. N. Amer. B. p. 49 (1887) ; Cooke, Bird 

 Migr. Mississippi Vail. p. 58 (1888) ; Cory,B. West Indies, ^.21^ 

 (1889 : ("uba & St. Croix) ; Salvin, Ibis, 1889, p. 379 (Cozumel) ; 

 Scott, Auk, 1890, p. 306 (Dry Tortu<ras) ; Schick, t. c. p. 327 (New 

 Jersey : breeds) ; Ehoads, Pr. Ac. Philad. 1892, p. 101 (Texas : ab. 

 & br.) ; Cory, Cat. West Ind. B. p. 83 (1892). 



? Rhyncliops fulva, ZiMM. Syst. Nat.'i. p. 229 (1766: "America;" 

 juv.) ; Gm. S. N. i. p. 611 (1788). 



Le Bee en Ciseaux de Cayenne, Dauhent. PI. Enl. ix. p. 304, pi. 357 

 (1784 : plate undoubtedly represents R. nigra). 



Black Skimnipr, Lath. Gen. St/n. iii. pt. 2, p. 347 (partim), fig. 

 frontisp. (1785: e.v Linn.) ; id. Hist. B. x. p. 96 (1824). 



Rhincops nigra (sic), Bp. Obs. Nomencl. Wits. no. 240 (1826) ; id. 

 Ann. Lye. N. Y. ii. p. 352 (1828). 



Rhynchops niger, Swains. Classif. B. ii. p. 373 (1837). 



Rhynchops borealis, Swains. An. in Menag. p. 360 (1838). 



Adult male in hreeding-plumage. Forehead (to the depth of 0"6 

 inch), cheeks, throat, and underparts white : crown, nape, shoulders, 

 and mantle black ; primaries sooty black, the three upper ones 

 tipped and margined with white ; secondaries and parapteral 

 feathers deeply bordered with pure white ; the lateral tail-feathers 

 chiefly white on the outer webs and pale brown at the tips and 

 along the inner webs, the central feathers with more brown than 

 white : under tail-coverts, underside of tail-feathers, and under 

 wing-coverts white : bill red at the base, shading into yellow (dull 

 in preserved specimens), blacki.sh on the anterior portion ; iris dark 

 brown ; tarsi and toes orange-red. Total length about 17 inches, 

 culmen 3'1, genys 4'2, wing 14-75-15-25, tail 5"5, depth of fork 

 about I'l, tarsus ]'4, middle toe with claw 1'3. 



Adult female. Similar, but considerably smaller. Total length 

 15 inches, culmen 2'6, genys 3"15, wing 14, tail 5, tarsus 1"1, 

 middle toe with claw 1*1. 



Adult in vnnter. Similar, but with an irregular white nuchal 

 collar, and a brownish tint to the black of the mantle and flight- 

 feathers. 



Immature. Browner ; the crown and nape brown, streaked with 

 greyish white. 



Young. Upper parts pale buff, streaked and spotted with ash and 

 umber-brown ; primaries blackish, edged with dull white; forehead 

 and cheeks huffish white ; underparts white ; tail-feathers whitish, 

 with ash-brown centres : bill livid brown, short, the upper man- 

 dible little shorter thau the lower ; tarsi and toes reddish brown. 



Nestling when a few days old. Stone-gi'ey, sparsely spotted with 

 black above ; underparts white. When older, the upper surface is 

 pale fawn colour and the spots are few. 



Huh. North America, chiefly on the eastern coast, from New 

 Brunswick and Maine (casually) southward : breeding from New 

 Jersey to Florida ; in winter, Cuba, St. Croix. Cozumel I. off 

 Yucatan, and the island of Trinidad. On the Pacific side from 

 Acapam and Tehuantepec, along the coast of Mexico, to San Bias. 



