Goiigh^ Kerguelen, and South Georgia Islands. 451 



The eggs from Kerguelen measure 2-74 X 1 '95 and 2*73 X 1*98 and are 

 much alike. Those from South Georgia are 2-84 X 2*01 and 2.78 X 2*03, 

 the last one is much like those from Kerguelen, but in the other one the 

 ground-color is much lighter, being a rather light olive green, while 

 in the rest it is olive drab. They are all spotted with varying shades 

 of dark brown, slaty gray and, in one, with some olive brown. The 

 slaty colored spots lie deeper beneath the surface than the others. 

 The shape, in all, is regularly ovate, the texture, coarsely granular. 



15, Sterna vittata Gm. Wreathed Tern. " Mackerel Gull." 



Sterna vittata Gmelin, Syst. Nat,, vol. i, 1788, p. 609 (ex Latham); Kidder and 

 Coues, Bull, U. S, Nat. Mus., No, 2, p. 17 ; iid., op. cit., No. 3, p, 11 ; Sharpe, Philos, 

 Trans, Roy. Soc, vol. 168, p. 113: Saunders, P, Z. S , 1876, p. 647 et 1877, p. 795; 

 id., Yoy. of Chal., Zool, vol. ii, p. 134. 



Two skins in the collection, one from Gough Island and one from 

 Kerguelen, referred to the above species by Mr. Allen. 



Mr. Sharpe (1. c), records both this species and S. virgata Cab. 

 from Kerguelen, but refers the specimens taken there by Dr. Kid- 

 der and identified by Dr. Coues to the latter species, but, considering 

 that vittata has been taken from this island by the English Antarctic 

 Expedition* and by the "Challenger"! and that one of Mr. Comer's 

 skins is from there, I prefer to accept Dr. Coues' original determina- 

 tion of his specimens as correct. 



The "Challenger" also took one specimen at Inaccessible Island 

 of the Tristan Group f which, Mr. Saunders states, is its nearest 

 known approach to South America, but Mr. Comer states that these 

 "mackerel gulls" were not uncommon at Gough Island. 



" There are quite a few mackerel gulls around the island. These 

 are a small bird, light blue, black top-knots, red beak and feet" 

 [Geo, Comer, Notes on Gough Island]. 



There is also an Qg^^ in the collection from South Georgia marked 

 " mackerel gull " which may possibly be of this species, though, from 

 the locality, I think it more likely to be S. hirundinacea Less., which 

 is common at Cape Horn and the Falklands, and which Mr. Comer 

 might easily not distinguish from this species. However, Pelzeln 

 describes and figures^ the Q,gg of IS. vittata and our ego;^ agrees very 

 well with his description, though his figure shows the ground-color 

 •decidedly more yellowish in tint (he describes it as "graubraun "), 



* Sharpe, Zool. Kerg., p. 114. f Saunders, Voy, Chal., Zool, vol. ii, p. 134. 



X Reise der Novara, Vogel, 1869, p. 153, p], vi, fig. 14. 



