STERNA HIRUNDO : WILSON's TERN. 365 



upon Muskegat, little may be said save that they vary to 

 an almost endless degree, and cannot specifically be 

 distinguished. 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 many 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 difficulty of satisfactorily 

 identifying any considerable number of nests rendered a 

 positive conclusion hopeless. The Arctic Terns, as 

 before stated, bred apart from the others, and laid their 

 eggs upon the bare sand. 



" The 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 chick. 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 intervals. 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 imagine its wonderful beauty. The 

 delicate, faultless outlines ; the long, slender, graceful 

 wings ; the pearly blue-gray back, and soft tinting 

 beneath, set off by the bright coral-red of the feet and 

 bill, all go to make up a whole that must satisfy the 

 most aesthetic eye. The delicate blush that suffuses the 

 breast of the Roseate Tern can only be seen in its 

 perfection for a brief period after death, for either it 

 fades altogether, or turns to a dull salmon tint before the 



