142 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



The Trudeau, or White-headed tern, is an interesting neotropical species, 

 which has been taken once on Long Island, as reported by Audubon in his 

 Synopsis of the Birds of North America, page 319, and in the Ornithological 

 Biography, volume 5, page 125, also in Giraud's Birds of Long Island, page 

 354. The record is also credited by Baird, Brewer and Ridgway, Water 

 Birds, volume 2, page 291, and Chapman's Hand Book, page 80, and Cham- 

 berlain, Revised Edition of Nuttall, page 228. Audubon's type specimen is 

 in the Giraud Collection, Vassar College Museum. It was collected by 

 Dr Trudeau at Absecum Beach, Egg Harbor, N. J. Unfortunately the 

 incidents and dates connected with the capture of the Long Island specimen 

 were not definitely recorded, but there is no reason to believe that Audubon 

 was mistaken regarding the identity of the bird. 



Sterna forsteri Nuttall 

 Forster Tern 



Plate 7 



Sterna forsteri Nuttall. Manual. 1834. 2:274 



A. O. U. Check List. Ed. 2. 1895. No. 69 



for'steri, of John Reinhold Forster 



Distinctive marks. Bill larger than in the Common tern, dull orange 

 with dusky tip ; black cap does not extend as far down as in h i r u n d o, leav- 

 ing more white between the eye and upper mandible ; wings relatively shorter ; 

 primaries silvery, the outer web of the first not black; wings whiter than 

 in the other species; under parts and rump white; mantle and tail pale 

 j)earl-gray; outer tail feathers white on their outer webs, gray on the inner; 

 feet orange-red. Adult in winter: Tail less forked, the peculiar pattern 

 of the outer feathers less distinct; crown white more or less tinged on the 

 back of the head with gray ; a black stripe from before the eye back across the 

 ear coverts. Young: Similar, washed with grayish brown on the upper 

 parts, and the primaries have more distinct spaces of white on their inner 

 webs, like the Common tern. 



Length 15 inches; extent 30; wing 9.5-10.5; tail 5-8, forked 2.5-5; 

 bill 1. 5-1. 75; depth of bill .4; tarsus .9-1; middle toe and claw i-i.i. 



