382 LARIDA 
The Caspian Tern has visited :—Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, 
Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent, Hampshire, and Dorset. A speci- 
men was also observed near the Farne Islands on June 6th, 
1880 (E. Bidwell, ‘ Zoologist,’ 1887). ‘‘As regards Scot- 
land, Mr. Oswin Lee states that he made a sketch of one 
of two birds noticed at the Findhorn bar on June 12th, 
1887” (Saunders, Man. Brit. Birds, 2nd Edition, p. 641). 
From Ireland there are as yet no records. 
This species may be distinguished by its size, being the 
largest of all British Terns. It has been found frequenting 
lakes as well as the sea-coast. 
Flight.—On the wing it is powerful, swift, and buoyant. 
Food.—The food consists chiefly of small fish. 
Voice.—The note, vociferously uttered if the breeding- 
haunts be invaded, is very harsh and scolding in character, 
resembling the syllables krake, krake. 
Nest.—The nest is a shallow depression, sometimes lined 
with broken shells or bits of stick. The eggs, laid in May 
or June, are stone-coloured, blotched with hght grey and 
dark brown. ‘Two to three form the clutch. 
Geographical distribution—The Caspian Tern breeds in 
colonies on the sandy shores and islands of Sweden and 
Denmark, also on the North Frisian Islands, notably Sylt. 
Mr. Saunders believes that it has nested still nearer to the 
British coast, viz., on the shores of Holland south of the 
Maas. On July 9th, 1875, he observed six adults flying 
in pairs, evidently going out to fish in the early dawn. 
This Tern is also widely distributed as a nesting-species 
in Southern Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and New 
Zealand, and in North and Central America. On migration, 
in autumn it passes over Southern Europe and Asia, 
reaching India and Ceylon. Westward, it migrates along 
the American sea-board, but in the Southern Hemisphere 
it appears to be resident. 
DESCRIPTIVE CHARACTERS. 
PLUMAGE. Adult male nuptial—Head and back of 
neck, glossy greenish-black; rest of neck, breast, and 
‘In the ‘ Zoologist’ for 1887, p. 457, Mr. Gurney states that nine 
Caspian Terns were obtained, and others observed, on the Norfolk coast 
between 1825 and 1860. Stevenson, in his ‘ Birds of Norfolk,’ vol. iii., 
p. 296, mentions nine Caspian Terns obtained at Great Yarmouth. 
