THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 187 



entrance of a hollow spout. Clutch, nine eggs, two of which 

 were slightly darker in colour to the Queensland examples, 

 and measured — (i) 2 inches ij lines x i inch 6^ lines; 

 (2) 2 inches i line x i inch 6^ lines. 



A single example only of the egg of this Goose has been 

 previously described by me. 



643. Prion banksii — (Bank's Blue Petrel). Locality — 

 Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South and West 

 Australia, and Tasmania. An egg from Macquarie Island is 

 somewhat round ; colour, soft white ; shell, slightly granulated ; 

 length, I inch 10^ lines; breadth, i inch 5^ lines. 



608. Sterna anglica — (Long-legged Tern). Locality — 

 North Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria. 

 Egg — Ground colour, usually light grey, but sometimes a 

 yellowish stone, heavily and irregularly smudged with umber 

 (light and dark). In some specimens a few of the heavier 

 smudges appear to hang about the upper quarter, otherwise the 

 markings are fairly diffused. Some of the darker specimens 

 resemble in shape and colour the better known eggs of the 

 Silver Gull ( Larus novce-hollandicej. Of all the Australian Terns 

 the eggs are next smallest, in point of size, to the Bass' Straits 

 Tern ( Sterna poliocercus). Average dimensions of six — Length, 

 2 inches \ line x i inch 5I- lines. 



According to Legge, the average dimensions of the eggs of 

 this Tern, taken in Asia, are i inch lo lines x i inch 4 lines, and 

 in America i inch 1 1 lines x i inch 4 lines. Therefore, it 

 would appear that the Australian examples are much larger, 

 which may really tend to prove that Gould was right in 

 recognising the Australian bird as another variety which, for 

 obvious reasons, he named Gelochelidoii maovtarsa, or Long- 

 legged Tern. 



I am indebted to our estimable member, Mr. F. R. Godfrey, 

 for the eggs of this inland Tern, which were exhibited at our 

 last meeting. They were taken at his station, " Pevensey," 

 about 13 miles from Hay, New South Wales. I possess 

 examples in my collection from " Ulonga," near the same 

 locality, taken in 1879, but was unable to identify them before. 

 Eggs were also taken this season in the Maryborough district, 

 Victoria. 



Mr. Godfrey furnishes the following interesting note : — " In 

 November there were large numbers of these birds (Long- 

 legged Terns) seen every day skimming in hawk-like fashion 

 over the salt-bush plains, generally about 12 or more in com- 

 pany, about 10 or 12 feet above the ground, watching most 

 keenly, with head turned down, for insects or small reptiles ; 

 and on discovering one they darted down and carried it up into 

 the air, then dropped it, and caught it while falling. The prey 



