122 



THE SPECIES. 



BtercorariUB. Plate xxxii, 

 371. crepidatus^ 20 in. 



370. pomatorhinus, 21 in, 



372. parasiticus^ 22 in. 

 369. crUari'hactes, 24 in. 



Richardson's Skita. Two central tail feathers 



three inches longer than the others. 



POMATORHINE Skua. Tvvo central tail feathers 



four inches longer than the others, and twisted 



upwards. 



Long-tailed Skua. Two central tail feathers 



nine inches longer than the others. 



Great Skua. Two central tail feathers less than 



an inch longer than tlie others. 



Richardson's Skua — Dimensions, Pj ; Eggs, Pm — is the commonest of the four in this 

 country. He is also known as the Arctic Skua, owing, apparently, to a mi<itake. He breeds in 

 Caithness and the Orkneys, and comes south on migratioa. Like all the ** pirate gulls " he 

 has a somewhat hawk-like flight, and chases birds on the wing until they drop their food, 

 which he catches before it reaches the sea. He never dives and rarely settles on the water. 

 His cry is the " skuaw," from which he gets his name. The nest is a hollow, lined with grass 

 , and moss, and contains one, two, or three eggs. 



The Pomatorhine Skua — Dimensions, Pp ; Eggs, Pa — or as it is now more generally called 

 the Pomarine Skua, is a regular winter visitor. 



The Long-tailed Skua — Dimensions, Qc; Eggs, Nt — is often known as BufFon's. It is 

 an Arctic species, and its visits are somewhat rare. 



The Great Skua— Dimensions, Rd ; Etjgs, Rn — breeds on the Shetlands. It is very 

 powerful on the wing, and is distinguishable by the white bases to its remiges. It has a luud 

 hoarse cry of " skuah-h-h " ; and its nest is a hole perhaps a foot in diameter, lined with moss 

 and heather, containing one o:- two eggs. 



Bterna. Plate xxx. 

 350. minuta. 



LARIDM, 



gin. Little Tern. Crown black ; forehead white; 

 tail white ; bill yellow ; legs orange ; remiges 26. 

 Tern. Crown black ; head white ; tail white and 

 grey ; bill red, black at tip ; legs red ; remiges 29. 



352, an^stheta, 14 in. Lesser Sooty Tern. Crown black ; nape white ; 

 two of ihe toes only webbed to the claw. 

 GuLL-BiLLED Tern. Head black ; tail grey ; bill 

 black ; legs black. 



Arctic Tekn. Crown black ; head grey ; pri- 

 maries with narrow grey band on inner webs; remiges 

 29 ; tail white and grey ; bill red ; legs red and 

 short. 



Sandwich Ticrn. Head black ; tail white ; bill 

 black witli yellow tip ; legs black. 

 fuliginosa, 16 in. Sooty Teun. Crown black ; nape black ; all three 



toes webbed to the tips. 

 doHgalli, 16J in. Roseate Tern. Rosy breast; bill black ; legs 

 red. 



345. caspia, 20 in. Caspian Tern. Head black ; tail white ; bill 



red ; legs black ; remiges 33. 



The Little Tern — Dimensions, If; Eggs. Hi. — arrives early in May, and stays till nearly, 

 the end of the year, when the black on its head becomes very dull. It has a slow flight, low 

 over ihe water. Its call is "kiriree." The eggs are laid in a hollow scratched on the 

 shingly beach ; sometimes there are three of them, sometimes four. 



The Tern— Dimensions, LI ; Eggs, Lh— is almost as often called the Sea Swallow, and 

 is one of our regular^ summer migrants. It has a slow skimming flight with occasional 

 hoverings. In wmter its black crown is sprinkled with white, and its bill and legs are very 

 pale in colour. The eggs are laid in a hollow of the ground in twos and threes, and there 

 are usually a number of these " nests '* together. 



The Lesser Sooty Tern— Dimensions, Lt ; Eggs, Mh— has only been seen here twict 

 as yet. 



The Gull-billed Tern— Dimensions, Mg ; Eggs, Mq— is a rare visitor notwithstanding iti 

 cosmopolitan range. It has a laughing cry of ha, ha, ha." 



348. fluviaiilis^ 13^ in. 



344. anglica, i^\ in. 



349. macrura, 1$ in. 



346. cantiaca, 15J in. 



351- 



347. 



