LOWER KLAMATH LAKE 



301 



Although the blind was erected with no attempt at con- 

 cealment, the adults, all screaming, came back in a body al- 

 most as soon as I had disappeared within it, and I shortly 

 experienced the satisfaction of being surrounded by this, the 

 largest and, in North America at least, one of the rarest 

 members of its genus. All wore the shining black cap with 

 elongated crest feathers, and had the bright coral red bill of 

 the nuptial season. 



Caspian Terns 



As, with gracefully uplifted wings, the daintily plum- 

 aged birds alighted, the young, doubtless in response to 

 their calls, ran out from the reeds and then ensued the usual 

 squabbling until the chicks, finding their own parents, were 

 snugly nestled under the silky white breasts. On these oc- 

 casions they sometimes fought three-cornered duels, but as 

 the sex of the contestants was unknown, I could not surmise 

 the meaning of the struggle. 



Like the young of the Common Tern and doubtless also 

 of the other members of this subfamily, the young Caspian 



