carpenter] the nesting OF THE BLACK TERN 



179 



They would fly around in short circles, swoop down and just 

 before getting to me, drop their legs straight down and hit my 

 head a stiff blow. Though there is plenty of hair on my head, 

 the blow hurt. Yet as I tried to scare them away and they would 

 not leave, I had to laugh because of their impudence. I tried to 



Upper — The old bird dropped on the nest. 

 Lower — Hidden away under the old bird. 



grab them as they would swoop, but they would shoot up quickly 

 enough to elude me. 



Observations of two other nests lead me to believe that the old 

 birds share the family duties about equally. One instance re- 

 lates to the matter of incubation. I was about three rods from the 



