TWO DAYS WITH THE TERNS 



123 



countless multitude of hovering, darting Terns, 

 whose voices united in one continuous, grating 

 te-a-r-r-r made the air tremble. There was an occa- 







66. Young Terns ; first stage, about four days old. 



sional vibrant cack from a Roseate, but not more 

 than a dozen birds of this species were heard. Asked 

 to estimate the number of birds present I should 

 have said ten thousand, though I should not have 

 been surprised to learn that there were twenty thou- 

 sand. However, Mr. George H. Mackay, of Nan- 

 tucket, who may be regarded as a Tern specialist, 

 placed the number of Terns on Penikese, in 1896, at 

 " six or seven thousand," and with the assistance of 

 Mr. R. H. Howe, Jr., counted 1,416 nests containing 

 2,055 eggs (Auk, xiv, 1897, p. 283). 



A small flock of sheep shared this part of the 

 island with the Terns, and their presence accounted 

 for the short grass which made the upland resemble 

 a closely cut lawn, and permitted one readily to see 



