ANNOTATED LIST OF THE BIRDS 81 



BLACK TERN (Hydrochelidon nigra surinamensis) 

 The Black Tern in adult plumage can be confused with 

 no other species. The young in the fall are always a much 

 darker gray above than other Terns. This western species is 

 preeminently a bird of the interior and characteristic of the 

 prairies. It occurs in our area as a regular fall migrant along 

 the coast, apparently completely changing its habits, as here 

 it is purely casual in the interior. Indeed I have seen large 

 numbers at sea off the Jersey coast far from land. The 

 numbers vary greatly from year to year, and sometimes it is 

 abundant, as in 1882, 1884, 1906, and 1919. The dates 

 range from early July to the middle of October, but August to 

 party September is the extent of the migration in ordinary 

 years. Observers can see it from any ferry in the Harbor at 

 this season with Common Terns. 



Long Island. Common fall transient, July 12 to September 

 22; casual in spring; May 29, 1921, Jones Beach (Griscom and 

 J. M. Johnson). 



ORIENT. Rare, irregular fall transient. August 2, 1914 to 

 September 9, 1914. 



MASTIC'. Common fall transient. 



LONG BEACH. Regular fall transient, August 3, 1922 

 (Bicknell) to September 22, 1919 (Bicknell). One shot June 

 18, 1873 (N. T. Lawrence); one in breeding plumage observed 

 at leisure June 3, 1922 (Charles Johnston). 

 New York State. Regular in the Harbor, July 13, 1920 (L. N. 

 Nichols) to October 12, 1908 (Chapin). Casual at Ossining many 

 years ago (Fisher), two recent records there (Brandreth). 



New Jersey. Purely a casual visitor away from the coast and 

 the harbor; an adult on Swartswood Lake, August 14, 1921 

 (Griscom). 



ENGLEWOOD REGION. Noted a few times in August from 

 Fort Lee Ferry, August 15, 1908 (Hix) to August 28, 1921 

 (Griscom); once on Overpeck Creek (Weber). 



BLACK SKIMMER (Rynchops nigra) Fig. 3 

 An occasional summer visitant to Long Island years ago, 

 when this curious bird bred commonly in southern New 



