THE OSPREY. 



An Illustrated Monthly Magazine Devoted Exclusively to the Interests of 



ORNITHOLOGY. 



Vol. 1. No. 1. 



GALESBURG, ILL., SEPTEMBER, 1896. 



$HKJ A Year 



A Tern Study. 



BY KEY. P. B. PEABODY. ST. YINCENT. MINX. 



A STUDY of Terns— a casual study 

 — not of the common Hirundo. not 

 of Maxima. Eleg^ans. Paradisca, 

 whose beautiful forms or exquisite colors 

 appeal so keenly to the quickened senses. 

 under the deli- 

 cious air of ( 

 Spring-, nor yet of j 

 our dear little 

 pearl-and-eb o n y 

 "Water Swal- 

 lows," of "(tuH- 

 like form," who. 

 about the l<»th of 

 May (in latitude 

 St. Paul 1 comes 

 wheeling- and roll- 

 ing- in compact 

 flocks, like well 

 drilled soldiers, 

 marching- in mid- 

 air, along- the 

 marshes, with 

 many a g-raceful 

 simultaneous dip, 

 waterward. and 

 an incessant, mu- 

 sically strepitant, 

 **chilt"-ing^ cho- 

 rus — but just a 

 study of Forster's 

 Tern — him of the 

 black pileum and 

 snowy under- 

 feather, pearly 

 white mantle and 

 trailing- forked 

 tail, so often mis- 

 taken for Hirun- 





sota represent both Hirundo and Forsteri. 

 It is to be doubted whether even a criti- 

 cal eye could disting-uish them in flight, 

 unless, perhaps, when flocking- together, 

 if. indeed, they do flock tog-ether », this 

 making the slig-htly greater size and tail- 

 lenufth of Forsteri apparent. 



While the common Tern breeds at Dev- 



il's Lake, North 



Dakota, I do not 

 personally know 

 of any breeding- 

 ground in Minne- 

 >ota. However, 

 cither Hirundo or 

 Forsteri — I do not 

 yet know which — 

 is found at and 

 near Mille Lacs 

 and the neig-hbor- 

 ing- lakes about 

 June 1, in com- 

 li pany with a few 

 > p, pairs of Caspian 

 Terns, and so, un- 

 doubtedly breeds. 

 I am inclined t(^ 

 l)elieve that the 

 Mille Lacs birds 

 a r e C» > m m o n 

 Terns, there be- 

 ing- in that imme- 

 so 



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 HEKOX LAKE, MIXX. 



marg-in instead 

 of the bog- g^y 

 marsh expanse 

 that seems so 

 dear to Forster's 



do, and yet (to say nothing- of specific 

 difi"erences of structure and color. > in 

 breeding- habit as widely difl'erent. Un- 

 doubtedly, the Terns that are seen during 

 the Spring- migration in Southern Minne- 



Tern. Owx present study will deal with 

 the rug-ged little ja^g-er as observed, dur- 

 ing the breeding season, in Southern 

 Minnesota, in the very notable bird j>ara- 

 dise — Heron Lake. Little does the casual 



