558 BIRDS — LARID^. 



alighted, or strung out in the wake of his flight like the tail of a comet. The Owl com- 

 monly paid little attention to this unbidden following, and apparently never tried to 

 sieze his perseontors while on the wing, but on SBTeral occasions we saw » sitting bird 

 ponnced upon and borne off. Sometimes in the middle of the night a great outcry 

 among the Terna told where a tragedy was being enacted. 



" I found the Terns sadly diminished in numbers when I last visited Mnskegat, in July, 

 1874. Their persecutors were ravishing their stronghold more relentlessly than ever, and 

 nearly every day fishermen came from far and near to collect their eggs. So cleanly 

 had they swept the island that we could find scarcely a Eest with eggs, and at that 

 comparatively lata date not a single yoang bird was to be seen. In fact, the poor Terns 

 were kept laying like hens through the whole summer. We were told by the fishermen 

 that quite as many eggs were obtained by them in August as in June ; it is doubtful if 

 one pair in a hundred succeeded in raising offspring that year. Under such conditions 

 the result is in vitable. If prompt legislation be not brought to bear on the matter, the 

 time is near at hand when the waters of Vineyard Sound will no longer be enlivened 

 by these innocent birds. The inconsiderable destruction of small fishes, a reason that 

 has been given for withholding protection, is of little moment, and those barren sandy 

 shores can ill afford to loss the presence of the gracetai Sea-swallow. 



" Of the eggs of the three species of Terns which breed upon Mnskegat, little need be 

 said save that they vary to an almost endless degree, and cannot specifically be distin- 

 guished. The Wilson's and Roseate Terns usually build nests, some of which are quite 

 bulky, with a lining of dry grasses, upon a foundation of coarse twigs or sea-weed. In 

 mauy cases, however, the eggs were simply laid in a slight depression in the sand. We 

 fancied that the Roseate Terns built more substantial domiciles than the other species, 

 but the diflSiculty of satisfactorily identifying any considerable number of nests rendered 

 a positive conclusion hopeless. The Arctic Terns, as before stated, bred apart from the 

 ethers, and laid their eggs upon the bare sand. 



" Thb notes of the Wilson's and Arctic Terns vary, if at all, only slightly in modulation. 

 The ordinary cry of anger or protest is a harsh vibrating te-ar-r-r, that of contentment 

 or recognition a soft chicle. They utter various other sounds, all more or less discordant. 

 The usual note of the Roseate Tern is a soft mellow hew-it, repeated at frequent inter- 

 vals. It has, in addition, when excited or angry, a cry which can be closely imitated 

 by forcibly tearing a strong piece of cotton cloth. 



" One who has never held in his hand a freshly killed Tern can scarcely imfgine its 

 wonderfal beauty. The delicate faultless outlines; the long, slender, graceful wings; 

 the pearly blue-gray back ; the soft tinting beneath, set off by the bright coral red of the 

 feet and bill, all go to mal- e up a whole that must satisfy the moat aesthetic eyo. The 

 delicate blush that suffuses the breast of the Roseate Tern can only be seen in its perfec- 

 tion for a brief period after death, for either it fades altogether, or turns to a dull salmon 

 tint before the bird becomes cold. Like an ethereal grace, it shrinks and perishes 

 belore the'gaze of vulgar eyes. 



" When the cares of incubation are over, — and sad, unprofitable cares they must be In 

 most cases for these poor birds,— the Terns resort again to the sand-bars nearest their 

 chosen fishing-grounds. The waters about Nantucket are a favorite haunt, and through 

 the month of September th»y swarm about every bay and cove that indents the shore. 

 Their movements, however, depend largely upon those of the blue-fish. Those voracious 

 creatures prey upon the smaller fishes, and, hunting always in schools, by their com- 

 bined action drive the feeble fry to the surface, when they are seized by the Terns. The 

 fishermm rely almost wholly upon the actions of the latter to discover the presence of 



