CASPIAN TEEN. 



STERNA CASPIA, Pallas. 



Sterna caspia, Pall. Nov. Coram. Petrop. xiv. p. 582 (1769) ; 



Nauru, x. p. 18 ; Heivitson, ii. p. 477 ; Yarr. ed. 4, iii. 



p. 536 ; Dresser, viii. p. 289. 

 Sylochelidon caspia, Macg. v. p. 626. 



Raub-Meerschwalbe, German ; Golondrina de mar grande, 

 Charran, Spanish. 



The Caspian Tern is a rare straggler to our shores ; 

 almost all of its recorded occurrences in England have 

 taken place in the eastern counties, and the majority of 

 these records refer to the months of May, June, July, 

 and August. My personal acquaintance with this fine 

 Tern is very small, and (with the exception of a pair 

 observed on the Guadalquivir in May 18S3) confined to 

 the Ionian Sea and the coast of Cyprus. From what I 

 have read and the little that I have seen of this species, 

 I gather that its habits closely resemble those of the 

 other European Sea-Terns, as distinct from the marsh 

 or freshwater-loving members of the family. The 

 eggs are laid on the bare sand, the food consists 

 exclusively of fish, taken by " stoops " from the air, 

 the flight is graceful and buoyant, and the note is harsh 



