712 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Clyde ; March 22, 1913, Argyll), main arrival 10-14 days later. 

 Breeding haunts deserted from niid-Aug., autumn passage to 

 beginning Oct. (late dates Oct, 18, 1910, Leicester ; Oct. 27, 1911, 

 Northumberland)). Occasional winter but a number recorded by 

 Collinge (Scot. Nat., 1921, p. 133). Breeds many places all coasts 

 but rarely in O. Hebrides. North of Loch Broom on west side 

 Scotland and in Ireland outnumbered by S. paradiscea, but on east 

 side relatively common further northward and abundant Pentland 

 Skerries, but sparse Orkneys, and only discovered breeding Shetlands 

 1901. Migrants occasional 0. Hebrides and Fair Isle. Breeds some 

 inland lakes and rivers Scotland and Ireland. 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Coasts, rivers, and lakes of Europe, from 

 70° north lat. to Mediterranean, Canaries, and Madeira (? no longer 

 nesting), Azores, Tunisia, temperate Asia, south to Mesopotamia, 

 east to Mongolia, Ob, and Yenesei, also temperate N. America. In 

 winter in India, Ceylon, Malacca, China, and Africa, as well as parts 

 of S. America. A closely allied local race inhabits Turkestan and 

 Tibet, but its distribution is not sufficiently known, and its characters 

 are somewhat variable. 



STERNA PARADIS^A 



441. Sterna paradissea Brunn. THE ARCTIC TERN. 



Sterna paradiscea Briinnich, Orn. Bor., p. 46 (1764 — Christiansoe, 



Denmark). 



Sterna macrura Naumann, Yarrell, in, p. 553 ; Saunders, p. 649. 



Description". — Adult male and female. Winter. — Like winter 

 Common Tern but rump, upper tail-coverts, and central tail- 

 feathers white, outer pair of tail-feathers with inner webs white and 

 no grey towards tip ; blackish line along shaft of inner web of 2nd 

 (outer) primary narrower, on level with tip of 5th less than half 

 width of inner web and on level with tip of 6th equal to width of 

 outer web ;* secondaries with more white at tips and with scarcely 

 any grey on inner webs of outer feathers ; lesser coverts not so dark. 

 N.B. — Very few winter adults examined and only one in moult, viz. 

 Oct. moulting body only. Moult appears to take place considerably 

 later than in S. h. hirundo. Summer. — A complete moult takes 

 place Feb.-Mar., but very few in moult have been examined. Like 

 adult summer Common Tern but with longer white tips to lower 

 scapulars ; underparts cold, pale slate -grey without any mauve 

 tinge ; only two outer pairs of tail-feathers with grey outer webs, 

 rest entirely white or with a tinge of grey on 3rd pair ; primaries as 

 winter ; tips of secondaries with more white and outer feathers with 

 very little grey on inner webs. 



Nestling (Plate 10). — As Common Tern but dusky colour of 

 throat generally (but not always) extends across fore-head. Ground- 



* This character is somewhat variable and cannot always be relied 

 upon. — H.F.W. 



