A, Anderson 
1965 
Oct 18 (cont.) 
Birds were found roughly as indicated on the diagram. Nearly a thousand 
greater frigate nestlings were spread along the ¥ side, 2~k ft. apart. Red- 
footed boobies were in the same general area, nesting in dead Sida bushes. 
Fairy terns, common noddies, and a few Hawaiian noddies roosted and nested on 
the rock walls of the guano factory remains and on the many gray coral rocks 
scattered around the W and N sida. Gray-sached terns nested thickly on the 
E side, laying their eggs usually on patches of l/2" pebbles between larger 
rocks. Blue-faced boobies nested mostly at the rim of the lagoon on the N, 
¥, and E sides; 200 nestlings were banded and about 40 more were present. A 
very large colony of lesser frigate nestlings (15-20,000) spread in a narrow 
band from half-way down the E shore toward the S. Evidence of nesting failure 
several months ago (corpses and skeletons) remained near the N end of the E 
side. 5 brown boobies were seen and one nestling was banded. Several 
Amd on d on 1 c Shearwaters were found under rocks. Over a dozen nesting L-T 
Tropicbirds were banded, one return. 
(cpyj) 
In the afternoon I banded great frigate chicks - 400 were banded in all. 
We then took blood samples of adult and immature sooty terns, Anderson T s shearwaters 
Common noddies, great frigate nestlings, and blue-faced boobies, partly done 
after dark. After sunset tow of us worked on the blue-faced along the W shore 
where about 200 pairs were nesting. There was one club of several hundred on 
the E side of the lagoon but the moon was almost full all night and it was 
impossible to work the club. The nesters were difficult but much more re- 
luctant to fly. Work ceased shortly after midnight. 
October 19 
Two banders and photographer went out to the ship in the 8 AM ? to fuge 
blood samples. The rest of us skinned etc.; a plover, a tattler, and a 'sharp- 
tailed sandpiper had been collected in the lagoon, as well as a number of sooties 
and Anderson; s whichdid not survive the blood sampling. Just before low tide 
we poisoned the reef waters as on Baker. A big difference was the absence of 
Big-eye dominance; also, all stages of eels ( 5 or 6 species) abounded here. 
Several hundred ? - very abundant - were collected, as well as shorefish, 
coral fish, surgeon fish, a puffer, octopus, ? fish, mullet, 2 flounder types, a 
and thirty of forty others. The tide friendly - ±xg like brought in most of 
the small fish killed and we made a special collection just of those. 
In the afternoon we sanded fairy terns, made a shorbird count, and banded 
lesser frigate nestlings. 21 golden plovers, 86 bristle-thighed curlews, 17 
wandering tattlers, and 119 ruddy turnstones were seen. The plovers were 
scattered In groups up to 4; the curlews sat mainly in the lagoon in groups, 
of 8-l4 with some large flocks on the shore; tattlers were scattered around 
the shore; and turnstones were both on the shore and in lagoon in members 
from 10-20 one small club of 10 brown boobies perch on the rock crest at the 
top of the beach. 
After dark, I worked blue-faced boobies again while others banded Audo- 
bon T s shearwater, sooty tern, and a few gray-sacked and blue -gray-noddy terns, 
quit at midnight . 
Oct. 20 
Early In the morning everyone worked lesser frigate nestlings, bringing 
