THE COMMON TERN. * J 



coverts, are black ; the hind neck, the throat, the chest, the rump and upper 

 tail-coverts white ; the shoulders and back bluish-grey, barred and mottled with 

 greyish-brown ; a broad band on the upper wing- coverts brownish- grey ; over the 

 upper parts there is generally a flush of buff; tail feathers with the outer webs 

 greyish-brown ; all the under side white ; bill corneous, sometimes scarlet, its base 

 reddish-yellow ; legs and feet scarlet or reddish-brown ; these and the bill increase 

 in intensity of colour, according to Saunders, up to the autumn, and often quite 

 rapidly change in October to dark, not resuming the light colour till next 

 spring, the rump and upper tail-coverts also becoming grey. 



During their immaturity which lasts till their second and in some instances 

 to their third spring the forehead is white, and the grey on the wing-coverts 

 becomes less conspicuous and extensive. 



" On going up to a breeding place," as Professor Macgillivray narrates, 

 " which may always be discovered from a distance, as some of the birds are to be 

 seen flying about it, one is sure to be met by several of them, which hasten to 

 remonstrate with him by harsh cries and threatened blows ; as he draws nearer, 

 more of them leave their nests ; and at length they are all on wing, wheeling and 

 bounding, now high, now low, at times coming quite close, and increasing their 

 cries, which resemble the syllables cree, cree, cree-ae. When walking along the 

 sandy shore no bird nearer, perhaps, than a quarter of a mile you may see one 

 or two of them coming up from a distance, increasing their cries as they approach, 

 then wheeling and plunging over and around you, and at length flying off. 

 Proceeding at a moderate height, they stop now and then, hover a moment, dip 

 into the water, and secure a sand-eel or young coal-fish. Many attend on the 

 fishermen or others who are catching sand-eels for bait or food, to fish up those 

 which slip from them disabled. On such occasions they are very vociferous, as 

 they also are when they have fallen in with a shoal of fry. They never dive ; but 

 I have often seen them alight on the water and swim a little, and sometimes a 

 whole flock may be observed reposing on the placid bosom of the water, affording 

 a very pleasing spectacle. They are very bad walkers, but on wing their move- 

 ments are easy and elegant; they skim along, bounding by with great speed, 

 ascend or descend, deviate to either side, stop short in an instant, hover in one 

 spot like a hawk, drop, dive or plunge headlong with surprising adroitness. Their 

 mode of flying, however, does not resemble that of a Swallow, and they obtain the 

 popular name of Sea-Swallows rather on account of their forked tail." 



If a luckless young Black-headed Gull " happens to enter the ternery, the 

 Terns swoop at him savagely, and frequently with fatal results. In one instance 

 I saw about a score of young Gulls, unable to fly, cross the beach and make for 



