322 ARCTIC TERN. 



end of April and leaving again in August and Septem- 

 ber. It has occasionally been obtained inland. 



It is very similar in habits and appearance to the 

 Common Tern, one of the chief points of difference, 

 amongst others, being the shape of the beak. In 

 its plumage it resembles those previously mentioned, 

 except that in the breeding season the under parts 

 are pure white. 



Its flight is very graceful, even more so than that of 

 the Common Tern. They are very interesting birds to 

 watch when searching for food: when darting for a fish 

 they drop like a stone with great force to the surface, 

 and the splash they make, says Seebohm, "can be dis- 

 tinctly heard for half a mile across the water ". Most 

 of their day is spent upon the wing, and they are very 

 incapable walkers, seldom attempting to progress more 

 than a yard or so on foot. 



They breed in colonies and very closely together. 

 They are often found breeding in the same haunts as 

 the Common Tern ; but they always keep separate, 

 each species having its own portion of the island. 



They lay their eggs on the bare beach, often close to 

 the water ; generally no nest is made, but sometimes 

 the eggs are placed in a slight hollow lined with a few 

 stalks of grass. The eggs are two or three in number 

 and closely resemble those of the Common Tern, going 

 through all the same varieties of ground colour and 

 markings; they are generally slightly smaller, however, 

 but the birds must be observed to distinguish them 

 with any certainty. 



