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Tern, Sandwich. — This is the largest of the genus which visits 
our shores, to which it is a summer migrant. It is also of stouter 
build than the two earlier-mentioned species, and its bill is stronger 
and of heavier make. In colour it resembles the Common Tern, 
but is rather darker, while the bill and feet, instead of being of the 
brilliant red of the Common and Arctic Tern, are black, the bill 
tipped with yellowish. The black cap of the Sandwich Tern is 
elongated, the hindmost feathers forming what might be almost 
termed a crest. At one time this bird visited our shores i> con- 
siderable numbers, breeding in colonies at various parts, but 
unfortunately it is no longer to be found in such large numbers, 
though at various places carefully guarded colonies still exist, and 
are, indeed, in certain places increasing in numbers. In habit the 
Sandwich Tern resembles its smaller cousins, feeding on the fry 
of fish which it captures in a similar way. The eggs of the 
Sandwich Tern are to be found at the end of May or in early June. 
They are placed on the ground in a slight plate-like depression, 
sometimes entirely unlined, sometimes lined with a few pieces of 
grass. The eggs are two and three in number, usually two, and are 
very rich and handsome in appearance. The ground colour varies 
from stone to buff, and they are richly spotted with black, with 
strong purplish brown under-markings. A favourite site for the 
breeding-place of the Sandwich Tern is on an island. There is a 
considerable colony on one of the Fame Isles, where the birds are 
carefully protected. 
T itmouse, Long-tailed. — This feathered mite is a resident with 
us, widely distributed, and in certain districts fairly common. As 
will be seen in the illustration it is possessed of a tail longer 
than its body, which is of a dull whitish-brown colour, slightly suffused 
with pale rose. It is indeed a charming sight, to see the little family, 
consisting of the two parent birds, with their six, eight, nine, or even 
ten young, flitting along from tree to tree as is their habit in the 
autumn months. Their tiny size combined with their length of tail 
renders them quite distinct from any of our other birds. The 
Long-tailed Tit builds what is unquestionably the most beautiful of 
British nests, an elongated structure of moss thickly covered with 
lichen, and felted together with cobwebs, with a small aperture 
beneath the upper end, and cosily lined with feathers. One patient 
observer took the trouble to count the number of feathers contained 
in one nest, to find the surprising number of over 2000. The eggs, 
usually ten or eleven in number, are extremely small, pure white, and 
spotted with tiny dots of light brown. With the exception of the 
Golden-Crested Wren, the egg of the Lonjj-tailed Tit is the smallest 
laid by any of our British birds. The instinct is surely a marvellous 
one, which enables these feathered mites to feed without favour and 
in due turn the ten hungry tots contained in their cradle. 
