54 



TERNS. 



of the outer feather of the short tail is nearly white ; feet, 

 black. The adult is the most graceful as well as the most 

 beautiful of our terns. Cry, " O-ar-ar-ar " ; a peculiar roll- 

 ing sound difficult to imitate ; it is harsher than in 2. Tem- 

 perate and Tropical regions, breeding on the Atlantic coast 

 of N. A. from the south shore of Mass. southward ; winters 

 far south of our limits; comes north in May; goes south in 

 Sep. Common. 



e. Little Terns. Sternula. 



Size, small; bill, very slender; form much as in d and 

 the colors are much the same, but there is a sharply defined 

 lunette of white on the forehead, fig. 67. 



1. LEAST TERN, S. antillarum. Our smallest Tern, 

 9.00; entire upper parts, inclu- Fig. 67. 



ing tail, pale, pearl-grey ; two 

 outer primaries, sooty-black 

 on outer portion; outer tail 

 feather, mostly white ; pure 

 white beneath ; bill, yellow, 

 black at exteme tip ; feet, yel- 

 low. In winter the white of 

 forehead is more extended. 

 Young, with a patch of dusky/ 

 on wing and with U- or V- 

 shaped marks of dusky on back: tail, not as deeply forked. 

 Downy young, nearly white ; grayish above often sprinkled 

 with blackish. Breeds from the south shore of Mass. south- 

 ward from late May (Bahamas) to early July (Mass) ; migates 

 north in May and June ; goes south in Sep. ; winters south of 

 our liniits. Eatlier uncommon now in X. E. but abundant 

 further south. Cries, '"'' Tce-dcel-deedle'''' and when alarmed, 

 a harsher, more decidedly given, '"'"Hoyf repeated at irregu- 

 lar intervals. Flight, not as steady as in the other species 

 of Terns given, but rather jerky, the bird falling a little be- 

 tween every wing-beat. In common with all of the Terns al- 

 ready given, and the two following, this species has the hab- 

 it of darting obliquely downward when flying in company 



F, C, e, 1. 1-6. 



