SANDWICH TERN 



Sterna cantiaca 



HE Sandwich Tern is a regular summer visitor to the 

 British Islands, breeding in a few favoured localities, of 

 which perhaps the Fame Islands, off the coast of North- 

 umberland is the best known. In Scotland it has still 

 a few breeding-places, though it is much molested. It 

 frequents at least one county in Ireland during the nesting 

 season. 



The Sandwich Tern is essentially a sea-bird, and is rarely seen any dis- 

 tance from the coast. It is a very wild and shy bird, and seldom permits 

 itself to be approached within gun-shot except at its breeding-haunts, where 

 it can be best observed. Its powers of flight are magnificent, and it may be 

 seen in the wildest storms hovering in the air above the surf before pouncing 

 down upon some luckless fish which has come too near the surface. Its food 

 consists almost entirely of fish, which it catches in the same way as the Solan 

 Goose, dropping like a stone on them from some height, with almost closed 

 wings, and raising quite a splash as it strikes the water, invariably reappearing 

 on the surface with its prey held crosswise by the back of the neck. 



The cry of the Sandwich Tern is not easily forgotten when once heard ; it 

 may be represented by the syllables, ' Kee-ow-wlck! or ' KSrrSrr-rSk. It has 

 also a call-note resembling the ' Kree* of the Common and Arctic Terns. 

 During the breeding season they are very fond of chasing each other at some 

 height in the air, keeping up a continuous chattering call as they wheel and 

 swoop after each other. 



About the middle of April the Sandwich Terns arrive at their breeding- 

 place, where they spend a few hours daily before departing to their feeding- 

 grounds, lengthening their stay as the nesting-time approaches. At this time 

 they will desert their nesting-haunts if subjected to any anxiety or even slight 



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