The Forster Tern 



"The young are 

 beautiful little crea- 

 tures, with a coat of 

 silky down in soft 

 grays and browns. 

 While very young they 

 somewhat resemble 

 chicks, except for their 

 long, sharp bills. They 

 take to the water very 

 readily, and their knack 

 of self-concealment is 

 wonderful. With nests 

 on every side of us and 

 a hundred screaming 

 parents circling above 

 our heads, an hour's 

 hard search rewarded us 

 with only four young, 

 although there must 

 have been at least a hun- 

 dred young ones hiding 

 in the area covered by 

 our search. The young, 

 as soon as they can 

 'navigate', are very ani- 

 mated, and show an un- 

 usual fear of an intruder. 

 They are also quite pug- 

 nacious, babies no larger than a warbler pecking at an outstretched 

 finger as viciously as a young hawk." 



Out of nesting hours the Forster Terns appear to divide their time 

 about equally between fishing, hawking, and loafing. At fishing time the 

 birds move about in leisurely fashion at a height of from ten to forty 

 feet above the lake. The beak is carried point down like that of a mos- 

 quito, and the bird is evidently giving close attention to the water. 

 Sometimes the bird hovers to make sure of the nature of its prey; but 

 oftener, without an instant's hesitation, it plunges souse! into the water, 

 sometimes passing clear from sight, and emerges a moment later with a 

 wriggling minnow in its beak. When the insects are flying well, the 

 Terns prefer to hawk. Dragon-flies and caddis-flies are favorite quarry, 

 and in pursuit of the latter the birds will often rise to a height of several 



Taken in Merced County 

 Photo by the Author 



AT THE END OF A SWOOP 



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