228 Wonders of the Bird World 



cinder-bed, the eggs and young being scattered so thickly 

 on the ground that it was often impossible to avoid treading 

 on them. Only a single egg is laid, and the bird defends 

 its treasure most courageously. 



Although Terns are birds which usually lay their eggs 

 on the sand, or on the grassy flat of an island, there are 

 some remarkable exceptions in the Noddy Terns of the 

 genus A nous and Gygis. 



The latter genus contains two snowy-white species, and 

 no nest is made by them. Their single egg is often 

 deposited on the leaf of a cocoanut-palm, in a position, as 

 one would think, of great danger, but it swings in the 

 wind apparently without risk of being broken. 



