Bulletin No. 27. 51 



Fish Commission steam-launch Me)\iranse)- brought us to the island, and 

 we had the grand sight of thousands of graceful terns swarming over a 

 rather small island. Their shrill cries made a perfect bedlum, and 

 occasionally but not often the deeper squawk of a Roseate Tern {Sterna 

 doH^i>-atii) was heard. On a low flat, uncovered at low tide, were seen 

 hundreds of Common Terns with a number of young first plumage birds, 

 .and, out in shallow water, groups of a score or more could be seen 

 splashing and flapping their wings in very evident enjoyment. 



A short walk past the ruins of the old Agassiz laboratories brought us 

 to the nests which were scattered over several acres of ground and were 

 often not more than a yard apart. Eggs and young in all stages were 

 very abundant, but we were sorry to note the large percentage of broken 

 eggs and dead nestlings. In spite of the attempts of the owners of the 

 island to protect the terns, there has been some shooting, and it is re- 

 ported that fishermen from Cuttyhunk carry off a good many eggs for 

 table use. Some sheep were wandering over the nesting ground, nibbling 

 grass, and they may sometimes trample on the eggs and very young birds, 

 though their presence did not seem to occasion alarm, and we saw a 

 couple of terns perched for several minutes on the backs of sheep and 

 neither sheep nor terns seemed to regard the situation as novel. We 

 were informed that a severe storm some days previous had wrought great 

 havoc in the colony. 



We spent several delightful hours studying the terns, and were loth 

 to leave the island when the pilot informed us that we must start back as 

 a wind was rising and it was getting late. 



Our presence was naturally the cause of great alarm among the parent 

 terns and they swarmed overhead in great distress. Some of the more 

 anxious would swoop past within a few feet of our heads, scolding 

 fiercely. When we retired some distance, things became more quiet and 

 one by one the birds resumed their nests. The pretty sight of these 

 beautiful birds sprinkled over the short grass for rods and rods was 

 something long to be remembered. 



Mr. Chapman took a number of pictures and they doubtless will ap- 

 pear in Bird Lore or in the beautiful series of lantern slides which Mr. 

 Chapman uses in his charming lectures on birds. 



The downy young leave the nest when disturbed, but are not able to 

 go far for a few days, and they never become active on foot like young 

 Sandpipers. When a little older, the young terns may be found squatting 

 on the ground, or among rocks if on the beach, with the head hidden in 



