10 AI-LEN S NATURALIST'S LIBRARY. 



Habits, — This species, says Mr. Saunders, " is nearly as 

 partial to brackish lakes as to the sea-shore, and when 

 searching for food it has a characteristic habit of keeping its 

 bill pointed downwards, almost at a right angle to its body." 

 As might be expected from such a powerful bird, its nature is 

 bold, and it makes a vigorous out-cry when its nest is attacked, 

 some of the birds swooping down within a few yards of the 

 intruder's hend, while the rest of the colony fly round in the 

 air above, and add their cries to the general expostulation. 

 Mr. H. Parker thus describes his experience of the nesting of 

 the Caspian Tern in Ceylon : — 



"The birds at first circled round for a short time, and 

 afterw^ards joined a large party of other Terns at a small neigh- 

 bouring bank, from which some of them made frequent sallies, 

 flying over my head a few times and then returning. Iheir 

 cry was a hoarse croak or a scream. 



" Later in the day I found a pair evidently breeding at 

 another bank beyond that at which my expedition ended, but 

 I could not spare time to visit it. They came out boldly to 

 attack my men, and made very determined swoops, often 

 coming within three feet of my head. They then rose verti- 

 cally above me for fifty or sixty feet, and after flying back 

 towards the nests returned to renew the assaults. Ihe more 

 timid of the birds, which I presume was the female, occasion- 

 ally settled on the nest for a short time, while the male was 

 engaged in bullying me. As I told him at the time, it was 

 nothing else, for I had not attempted to molest him, and the 

 nest was certainly quite half a mile away." 



The food of the Caspian Tern seems to consist almost 

 entirely of fish, but it is said to rob other birds' nests of their 

 eggs, and to devour young birds as well. 



Nest. — A slight depression in the sand, occasionally lined 

 with pieces of shell or a few bents. 



Eggs. — Two or three in number, laid in May or June. There 

 is considerable similarity in the eggs of the Caspian Tern to 

 those of the Gull-billed Tern, though they are, of course, much 

 larger. The general colour is greyish or stone-buff, sometimes 

 approaching buffy-white, and the markings consist of scattered 

 spots, seldom confluent, of chocolate-brown or even blackish, 



