TERNS 169 



dusky; orbital and auricular regions dusky blackish; remainder of the head, 

 extreme lower part of the nape, and entire lowerparts white, the nape and 

 sometimes the breast, finely mottled with buffy gray; back, scapulars, wing- 

 coverts, rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail pale pearl-blue, the back and 

 scapulars overlaid with pale buff irregularly mottled with dusky, each 

 feather with a submarginal dusky V-shaped mark; primary coverts and 

 primaries dark bhiish gray edged with paler, the inner webs of the latter 

 broadly edged with white; tail-feathers, marked near their ends much like 

 the longer scapulars, their outer webs rather dark grayish; bill brownish 

 dusky; feet dusky." L., 15'50; W., 9'50; T., 7'50; B., T50 (B., B., and R-). 



Range. Temperate and tropical regions. Breeds locally from Sable 

 Island to L. I. and from the Bahamas to Lesser Antilles and Venezuela; 

 formerly from Maine to Fla. ; rare migrant in Cen. Am. ; winters from the 

 Bahamas to Brazil; accidental in Ohio; occurs on the coasts of a large part of 

 the E. Hemisphere. 



Long Island, formerly uncommon but regular S. R., May through Sept. 

 (Butcher). N. Ohio, casual T. V. 



Nest, as in Common Tern. Eggs, 3, not distinguishable with certainty 

 from those of S. forsteri or S. hirundo, but averaging paler and less heavily 

 marked, 1'65 x 1'20. Date, Cobb's Is., Va., May 13, 1871; Muskeget Is., 

 Mass., June 7. 



This species is found in small numbers associated with colonies 

 of Common Terns, apparently making its nest among theirs. It is a 

 less excitable, wilder bird than hirundo, and its single harsh note, cack, 

 may be distinctly heard above the the uproar of Common Terns, as it 

 hovers somewhat in the background, Its white breast and long outer 

 tail-feathers also aid in distinguishing it. 



74. Sterna antillarum (Less.}. LEAST TERN. Ads. in summer.-** 

 Forehead white, Zores and crown black; back, tail and wings pearl-gray; 

 outer web of outer primaries and shaft part of inner web slaty black ; under- 

 parts white; bill yellow, generally tipped with black; feet orange. Ads. in 

 winter. Top of head white, more or less spotted with black f back of head 

 black; bill blackish. Im. Upperparts and tail at end mottled with blackish 

 and buffy, primaries as in adult, underparts white, bill blackish. L., 9'00; 

 W., 6'90; T., 3'56; B., I'lO. 



Range. Tropical and temperate Am. Breeds on coast of a. Calif, and 

 on Gulf coast from Tex. eastward; also n. to Mo. (formerly to Iowa) and nw. 

 Nebr., has occurred in Wise, and S. D.; breeds also from the coasts of 

 Mass., Va., N. C., and Fla. s. to the Bahamas, W. Indies, British Honduras 

 and Venezuela; now rare, but formerly abundant in the breeding season 

 from Fla. to Maine, wandering to Lab. and N. F. ; in migration occurs on 

 the coasts of L. Calif, and w. Mex. ; winters from the Gulf coast to Venezuela 

 and Peru. 



Washington, casual T. V.; Long Island, T. V., formerly abundant S. R., 

 now rare. N. Ohio, Common S. R. in Sandusky marshes, May 10-Sept. 25. 

 SE. Minn., rare T. V., Aug. 29. 



Nest, a slight depression in the sand. Eggs, 3-4, buffy white, speckled or 

 spotted with chocolate, 1*25 x '90. Date, Matanzas Inlet, Fla., May 18, 

 1894; Cobb's Is., Va., May 28, 1886. 



The Least Tern was brought so near the verge of extinction by mil- 

 liners' collectors that in spite of protection it has never recovered from 

 the attack. There is a small colony on Martha's Vineyard, and they are 

 found breeding locally in small numbers from North Carolina south- 

 ward. 



Small size is always a good character in identifying this species, and 



