SEA-BIRDS AND PLOVEBS. 377 



young which could fly quite well. The old birds flew round 

 at a safe distance, very often settling on opposite side of me, 

 keeping just out of sight over the rise of the hill, calling to each 

 other with a soft musical whistle all the time. At another spot 

 a pair were particularly noisy and bold, coming quite close to 

 me, and whistling loudty. Several times I noticed one of these 

 birds flying at a great height, apparently crossing from one hill- 

 top to another, uttering a prolonged and varied whistle, which 

 might almost be called a song. 



Arnside. The keeper at Foulshaw Moss told me that when 

 the Curlews flew around, as in the two instances mentioned 

 above, and as a bird was doing while I was speaking to him, it 

 was a sure sign that the eggs were hatched out, and that their 

 young were somewhere near. When they had eggs, they were 

 much quieter in their behaviour. There were three or four 

 pairs breeding about Foulshaw Moss. 



Sandwich Tern (Sterna cantiaca). — The Sandwich Tern was 

 breeding in the sand-hills at Ravenglass. It is said to breed 

 also on Walney Island, but I was unable to find it there, although 

 I searched carefully for it. 



Ravenglass. I was told here by one of the fishermen that 

 there were about fifty pairs of these Terns breeding in the sand- 

 hills, in eight or nine separate clumps, amongst the large colony 

 of Black-headed Gulls. During one afternoon I found four 

 nests in one spot, and ten nests in another. They were placed 

 very close together, the clump of four covering an area of 

 about one square yard, and the ten nests covering a proportion- 

 ately small area. In every nest the young were just coming out 

 of the eggs, the clutch having been either three or two eggs. 

 The down of the young was a light grey colour speckled with 

 black. The nests were very slight hollows made in the loose 

 sand, a few of them having a few pieces of dry grass arranged 

 round the edge. The sand was so loose and dry that in many 

 cases almost all trace of nest had disappeared ; but where the 

 shape of the nest could be made out, it measured about 5 in. 

 diameter by ^ in. deep. Both these clumps of nests were 

 surrounded by Black-headed Gulls' nests and eggs. The cry of 

 this bird was quite different to that of the Common or Arctic 

 Tern, being shorter, sharper, and stronger. The old birds were 

 Zool. 4th ser. vol. VI., October, 1902. 2 G 



