i8q} I Dwight, Summer Birds of Prince Edtuard Island, y 



evidence I have is the fact that I saw a dozen or more of the hirds about a 

 cliff near New London on the north shore of the island, and heard the 

 young 'squealing' in inaccessible crevices. This cliff, extending for 

 perhaps half a mile, is probably the highest on the island, and is almost 

 sheer to the water seventy or eighty feet below. No beach here intervenes 

 between its base and the waves which in times of storm beat so fiercely 

 against it that it is justly dreaded by mariners as one of the most danger- 

 ous spots on the north shore of the island. Its crumbling face, to the very 

 brink of which the green fields above extend, affords ledges and seams 

 where the 'Sea Pigeons' find secure nesting places, and are said to be 

 "plenty." I devoted only one day to exploring this locality and did not 

 see many birds. They were in small parties or pairs, floating upon or 

 skimming over the water, or quietly sitting upon some ledge, the white 

 wing-patch conspicuous against the red background of rock as viewed 

 from a boat. Their black bodies were comparatively inconspicuous owing 

 to shadows. At Tignish a boy told me he had found a nest the previous 

 year in the low bluffs of the north shore, and I think they may breed in the 

 high cliffs southwest of North Cape, although I could not make thorough 

 search. I also saw a pair at East Point where again are high cliffs, sixty 

 feet or more in height. 



Larus argentatus smithsonianus. American Herring Gull. — A few 

 were seen from time to time, but I could find no evidence that they bred on 

 the island. Birds of such powerful flight might well wander in the course 

 of a day many miles from their breeding grounds. 



Sterna hirundo. Common Tern. — It is probable that this species, 

 known as the 'Mackerel Gull,' is the only Tern resident during the 

 summer months, and it is abundant at many points, particularly the sandy 

 reaches of the north shore. I visited a colony near Souris July 7, con- 

 sisting of perhaps seventy-five pairs. Several nests found contained three 

 eggs each, and were the usual depressions in the plains of drifted sand, 

 protected possibly by a few blades of coarse beach-grass and in one case 

 by a few wisps of grass wound round the edge of the hollow. The birds 

 were reserved in their demeanor, but did not hesitate to expose themselves 

 to the danger of firearms when their nests were examined. Their dainty 

 plumage and easy flight always seem out of keeping with their harsh 

 voices. It is pleasant to visit a colony of Terns and realize it has escaped 

 the persecutions of the milliners, for perhaps no one genus of birds has 

 been more thoroughly exterminated in certain sections of our country 

 than has Sterna, thanks to Dame Fashion's inexorable decrees. I was 

 told that this species made its appearance each spring with wonderful 

 regularity on the north shore — usually May 22 — and always between 

 May 21 and 24. 



Phalacrocorax ? Two birds were seen at New London, July 2, 



perched on a cliff white with their chalkings, but they could not be ap- 

 proached. I was told that 'Shags' were often seen on this rock, but were 

 not thought to breed there. Whether carbo or dilofhus it is impossible 

 for me to say. 



