A HISTORY OF KENT 



to obtain food, and this field diet is varied 

 during the day by that of the sea shore. To- 

 wards sundown these birds are clamorous in 

 the extreme. They utter incessantly their 

 ' courlie ' cries, and these are further varied by 

 pretty rippling ones. A flock in the far 

 distance will rise up and fly past another at 

 rest. This movement calls forth vociferous 

 cries from the latter, who seem clearly to be 

 asking them to stop and join their community, 

 for the curlew loves company and is seldom 

 seen alone at this time of the year. In this 

 way they pass their time, waiting anxiously 

 for the tide to lay bare the sands. From time 

 to time messengers are sent out over the sea- 

 wall to ascertain whether the sands are yet in 

 view and their return is always welcomed 

 with a great demonstration. Should the night 

 be inclement they leave the exposed situation 

 of the Lydd beach and retire inland to rest, 

 seeking sheltered spots in Romney Marsh. 

 By the end of September the majority have 

 left ; only a few remain, frequenting the sands 

 at low tide. When first they arrive near the 

 coast they keep much to the pasture fields 

 and seldom visit the shore line. A few re- 

 main throughout the winter. I have an 

 adult, obtained in December from the Cran- 

 brook district. It has been obser\'ed at Rain- 

 ham throughout the summer (Prentis). On 

 the Rainham marshes trained dogs are often 

 employed by the fishermen and 'mud-diggers' 

 to assist them in killing the small flocks of 

 young birds on their arrival in August. A 

 dog is sent out on the mud-flats, and as soon 

 as the curlews see it they invariably attack it. 

 The dog then retreats to the dyke where his 

 master lies hidden, and the curlews, following 

 up their success, soon fall victims to the en- 

 sconced gunner. 



230. Whimbrel. Numenlus phteopus (Linn.) 

 Met with in spring and autumn — in May 

 and again in September, but less frequently 

 in the latter season. Their passage north- 

 ward in spring is marked with extreme 

 regularity every year. Mr. Prentis says : 

 ' The 7th of May is the grand time for the 

 whimbrels ; after staying a week or ten days 

 they are all oflF together, not a single one being 

 left behind. In the autumn they make no stay, 

 flying high overhead we hear their clear 

 whistle.' A few birds sometimes remain with 

 us throughout the winter, especially on the 

 south coast. 



231. Black Tern. Hydrochelidonnigra{L\nn.) 

 Locally, Black Kip. 

 There is hardly any doubt that this tern 

 bred in Romney Marsh before drainage and 



298 



cultivation was commenced. Now it is only 

 a spring and autumn migrant, less common 

 during the former season. In August and 

 September I have met with small batches on 

 migration, all immature birds, on the shore 

 near Lydd. On 24 May 1896 I observed 

 an adult pair following the sea-board near 

 Rye. Storm-driven individuals sometimes 

 occur far inland. An immature female, ob- 

 tained at Marden, is in the Maidstone 

 Museum. 



232. Gull-billed Tern. Sterna anglica, 



Montagu. 

 A rare spring visitor. There are two 

 specimens from Lydd in the Plomley col- 

 lection. 



233. Caspian Tern. Sterna caspia^ Pallas. 

 Like the last, a rare visitant. One was 



obtained near Lydd prior to 1845 (Thompson, 

 Notebook of a Naturalist, p. 265). Some 

 few years ago an individual was observed on 

 the Medway in autumn by Mr. Prentis. 



234. Sandwich Tern. Sterna eantiaea, J. F. 



Gmelin. 

 A resident, though very locally distributed. 

 I have found its nest in the county, but for 

 obvious reasons I shall not mention the 

 locality. This species was first discovered to 

 be a British bird by Mr. Boys, who found it 

 at Sandwich in 1784. 



235. Common Tern. Sterna fluviatilis, Nau- 



mann. 

 Locally, Kip. 

 A resident, but locally distributed in its 

 breeding haunts. The colonies on the Lydd 

 beach have sadly diminished within the last 

 few years. The restricted breeding area 

 taken up by these terns is distinctly pre- 

 judicial to the safety of their eggs. The 

 children of the fishermen and coastguard 

 oflScers soon discover these spots, and the eggs 

 are taken for eating. The increased artillery 

 practice over the Lydd beach has also a great 

 deal to answer for in the diminution of this 

 tern's breeding numbers. 



236. Arctic Tern. Sterna macrura, Naumann. 

 Immature birds have occasionally been ob- 

 tained off the south coast in autumn, on their 

 migration south. 



237. Little Tern. Sterna minuta, Linn. 



Locally, Scurrit. 



A summer visitor. Breeds in small colonies 



on the Lydd beach, where it is more numerous 



than the common tern. All day long these 



little terns may be seen wending their flight 



