44 WATER BIRDS 
Nest: A shallow depression scooped in the sand of a beach. 
Eggs: 2 to 4; narrower and more pointed than those of Caspian tern ; 
grayish, spotted with brown and purple. Size 2.67 X 1.70. 
CONCERNING the Royal Tern, Mr. Frank M. Chapman 
writes: “It is a strong, active bird on the wing, and a 
reckless, dashing diver, frequently disappearing beneath 
the surface in catching its prey. The slow-flying pelican 
are at its mercy, and it often deftly robs them of their 
well-earned gains. 
“All the terns are to be known from the gulls by the 
very different manner in which they hold their bills. 
A tern points its bill directly downward and looks, as 
Coues says, like a big mosquito, while a gull’s bill points 
forward in the plane of its body.” 
69. FORSTER TERN. — Sterna forsteri. 
Famity: The Gulls and Terns. 
Length: 15.10. 
Adults in Summer ; Top of head and nape jet black ; upper parts pearl- 
gray; under parts, including throat and sides of neck, uniform 
white; bill dull orange, tipped with dusky; feet deep orange. 
Adults in Winter: Similar, but head white, tinged with gray on nape, 
and white dusky patch around eyes and ear-coverts ; bill brownish, 
merging to black at tip; feet brownish. 
Young: Similar to winter adults, but with top of head, nape, back, and 
wings washed with dark umber; distinctly darker at end of tail ; 
sides of head dusky brownish. 
Downy Young: Upper parts pale buffy brown, coarsely mottled with 
black ; under parts, except throat, white. 
Geographical Distribution : North America generally ; south in winter 
to Brazil. 
Breeding Range: On Pacific coast from Washington to Lower California ; 
common at Lake Tahoe, Eagle and Elsinore Lakes, California, 
Breeding Season: Approximately, May 1 to July 20. 
