432 ANSERES. LARID^. 



ness of whose plumage contrasts with the blue sky ; 

 he flies rapidly round and round in a large circle, 

 quickly flapping his wings without intermission. 

 Suddenly, he arrests his flight, flutters his wings 

 in rapid vibration, as he looks downwards, but in 

 a moment proceeds as before: it was doubtless a 

 fish near the surface, but which disappeared before 

 he could descend. Presently he again stops short, 

 flutters, then bringing the elbow of the wings to 

 a right angle, descends perpendicularly, but with 

 a singular turning of the body, so as to present 

 now the back, now the belly, alternately, to the 

 observer; not, however, by a rotation, but irregu- 

 larly, and as if by jerks. But his purpose is again 

 frustrated; for on nearly reaching the surface, he 

 recovers himself with a graceful sweep, and remounts 

 on flagging wing. Again he circles ; and again, 

 and again stops: at length, down he swoops, dis- 

 appears with a plash, and in a moment breaks, 

 struggling, from the wave, and, as if to rise burdened 

 with prey were difficult, flags heavily near the sur- 

 face, and circling slowly round, gradually regains his 

 former altitude. Suddenly, as if alarmed, though 

 nothing appears to cause it, he utters two or three 

 loud cries in a plaintive tone, and flies off, along 

 the coast, until he is concealed from view by the 

 projecting mangroves. Yet, strange to say, in a 

 few seconds he returns, and calmly pursues his 

 wonted occupation. When satiated, he betakes him- 

 self to some one of the logs of wood which are 

 placed as buoys by the fishermen to mark the posi- 

 tion of their sunken fish-pots; and on this he re- 



