318 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE ORNITHOLOGY OF INDIA. 



French grey. The first three primaries very dark grey, 

 almost black on the outer web of the first primary, dark 

 grey on the outer webs of the second and third (which are 

 however more or less powdered, and silvered over with pale 

 French grey) and dark smoky grey, on a stripe on the inner 

 webs of all three, nearest the shafts. The rest of the inner 

 webs of these three are pure white. The rest of the quills are 

 margined, at the tips, and on the inner webs with white, the 

 fourth and following primaries have the grey slightly darker, 

 while the tail feathers (excluding the longest which are pure 

 white) have it slightly paler than on the back. The shafts of 

 all the quills are pure white ; but the earlier primary greater 

 coverts have them darker, or have a trace of a narrow darker 

 grey shaft stripe. 



If this species is new, which the above description will 

 doubtless enable Mr. Howard Saunders to tell us, it may stand 

 as Sternula korustes, nobis. The black on the head is so 

 arranged, and so runs down the back of the neck, that the 

 bird looks just as if it had a black helmet on with a plume 

 running down the back of the neck. 



I may add that there is no black at all about the bill of the 

 adult, which, but for the difference of color, appears to me 

 absolutely identical with that of Sternula melanauchen. There 

 is no white about the forehead, and the tarsi and feet, except 

 for the difference of color, appear to be perfectly like those of 

 this latter species. 



990.— Sterna bengalensis, Less. (3.) 



In all our jouneyings we never saw a single specimen of this 

 species about any of the islands. In fact the entire dearth of 

 gulls and terns was what most surprised me during my trip. 

 Davison, however, shot three specimens of this species, all 

 females. He says : — " I only met with this tern twice, and on both 

 occasions, on the north coast of Camorta ; once I saw a small 

 party of about twenty, and once only a pair. On both occa- 

 sions they appeared to be flying away westwards, but were 

 attracted by the boat, around which they hovered for a few 

 minutes. - " 



These females measured as follows : — 



Length, 15-25 to 15 - 75 ; expanse, 35 to 36*5; wing, 11*4 

 to ll'f ; tail, from vent, 5 to 5 - 6 ; tarsus, 1 to 1*1 ; bill, at 

 front, 1*95 to 215 ; wings, when closed, reach to 2 inches 

 beyond tip of tail. Legs and feet black ; soles yellow ; bill 

 yellow ; irides deep brown. 



