[300] BIRDSOFOREGON 



cate. They migrate north along the coast in May and south in the fall 

 from August (August 30, Lincoln County) to September (September 2.7, 

 Tillamook County). As do many migratory water birds, they seem to 

 travel well offshore, and unless one goes out to them, only casual strag- 

 glers are seen from the shore. In 19x0, from September 19 to 2.7, there 

 was a considerable flight of these birds on the Tillamook County coast, 

 centered largely at Netarts Bay, during which period both Alex Walker 

 and Jewett collected numbers of specimens. Shaw (192.4) recorded one 

 taken at Yaquina Bay, September 4, 1904; and Jewett (i92.ib), one taken 

 at Netarts, May i, 1916. These are the only shore records we have. 



On August 30, 192.9, the authors and Braly made a trip offshore from 

 Newport, Lincoln County, and were on the ocean from 8 a.m. until 5 

 p.m., most of the time from 6 to 9 miles out. All day long there was a 

 constant flight of Sabine's Gulls headed southward, either single indi- 

 viduals or small companies. Many hundreds passed us during the day, 

 but no particular effort was made to count individuals. Anyone who has 

 ever seen this exceedingly graceful little gull with the distinctive white 

 marks on the edges of its wings will not confuse it with any other species, 

 and we enjoyed to the utmost our experience in watching them by the 

 hundreds. It is evident that we struck the major southward flight of this 

 beautiful bird, as we have been offshore a number of times since and 

 have never been fortunate enough to repeat the experience. 



The food of two birds collected by Alex Walker in Tillamook County 

 in 192.0, one at Sand Lake and the other at Netarts, consisted entirely of 

 insects weevils, carabid beetles, ants, and a few miscellaneous ones. These 

 gulls are so rare in Oregon that their choice of food while in the State 

 cannot possibly be of any economic consideration. 



Forster's Tern: 



Sterna forsteri Nuttall 



DESCRIPTION. Outer web of outer tail feathers white, inner web dusky; tail very 

 narrow and long. "Adults in summer: under parts white; upper parts light pearl 

 gray, top of head black; outer web of outer tail feather white; feet orange red, bill 

 dull orange, dusky at tip. Adults in winter: top of head white, back of head tinged 

 with gray, a dusky stripe around eye and across ear coverts; bill and feet duller 

 colored. Young: upper parts, crown, and sides of head washed with brownish; tail 

 feathers dusky toward ends." (Adapted from Bailey.) Downy young: "The downy 

 young is quite different from that of the common tern. The upper parts vary from 

 light 'clay color,' through 'cinnamon buff" to 'pinkish buff,' shading off to paler 

 shades of the same color below, paling on the breast and belly almost to white, and 

 darkest on the throat, which is 'wood brown' or 'drab' in some specimens, but 

 never so dark as in the common tern. The upper parts are heavily spotted or 

 streaked with black or 'blackish brown,' less heavily on the head and more heavily 



