Once he came with a fish while his mate was brooding the chick 
and walked all around her with spread wings occasionally trying 
to thrust his bill under her but she would not move and finally 
he swallowed the fish himself and flew off. Both birds often 
stood one on each side of young caressing it in turn with their 
bills; a pretty sight. Sometimes they hovered directly over the 
young and dropped by its side but oftenest they alighted from 15 
to 20 yds*- off and approached it by a succession of short, quick 
Plover-like runs holding their heads erect and looking keenly 
about at each halt. The young would often run 4 or 5 yds,: at 
a stretch but when I went to the spot I found it stretched out 
flat on the sand, its eyes closed, shivering slightly, but not 
otherwise moving, a feeble looking little object* It matched the 
sand so closely that I overlooked it many times* 
I saw a good many young on the wing to-day some of them 
catching fish for themselvefi* 
They uttered a single shrill call, ku, ku, k-u- continued many 
A 
times. 
The Least Tern while fishing hovers very like a Kingfisher 
maintaining its position by beating its wings with great rapidity. 
It invariably descends with spread wings never closing them but 
holding them rather loosely* It falls lightly like a big butter¬ 
fly but usually goes quite under water although never, I think, 
as far under as the larger ferns* As a rule it fishes in 
shallower water* 
Last night Least ferns were flying about in numbers and very 
