Mar., 1922 A LARGE TERN COLONY IN TEXAS | 41 
chocolate spots and blotches, and resembles eggs of the Sharp-shinned Hawk 
to some extent. : 
The Common Tern was found to nest only on the two mud islands. It was 
present in enormous numbers also, several thousand would be quite conserva- 
tive. It selected for its nesting site the more thickly-grown grassy areas, and 
while it nested in some eases inside the Gull-billed area, the main colony was 
entirely separated from the latter. The nests were distinctively better built 
than those of the Gull-billed, with more grass, less mud, and a more neatly 
shaped cup for the eggs. Usually the nest was sheltered on one side by a sprig 
of salt grass. Nesting had evidently commenced simultaneously with the Gull- 
billed, for on May 16 all nests contained eggs and quite a few small downy 
young were found. The young of this species were similar in appearance to 
those of the Gull-billed. 
ges were found to vary in color less than in the Gull-billed. The usual 
type was a greenish-olive shell with brownish and blackish spots. Some tended 
Fig. 17. NEST AND SMALL YOUNG OF THE CASPIAN TERN, CAMERON 
County,” TEXAS. 
Photo by Robert Runyon. 
toward a totally brown shell and some were nearly blue. The egg is smaller 
than that of the Gull-billed, more slender though nearly as long. All nests eon- 
tained either two or three eggs and none with four were found. 
We found the Common Tern to be the most pugnacious, determined and 
persistent fighter of them all. On the wing it was more agile and graceful, 
with perhaps more speed than the other small terns. It swoops closer to one’s 
head, cries louder and oftener, and attracts more attention than the others. It 
also goes to the other extreme, however, in sinking more quickly and quietly 
to the nest, following the attack on the intruder. 
Forster Tern was present in very limited numbers, perhaps less than 100. 
It associated with the Common Tern more than with the Gull-billed. I found 
the red bill to be the easiest distinguishing character in this bird. It was found 
nesting in an area between the main colonies of the Gull-billed and Common 
on the southern mud island. The nests were like those of the Common in being 
well built, but the bird had evidently commenced nesting later, because all 
eggs were fresh on May 16 and no young birds were seen. All nests contained 
