MILLER : BEACH MOUSE OF MUSIvEGET ISLAND. 
79 
Datura stramonium Linn.— A few plants near house. 
Solidago sempervirens Linn.— Common. 
Achillea millefolium Linn.— A few at west end of island. 
Artemisia sp.— Very abundant throughout the dryer part of the 
island, but not in bloom at the time of my visit. 
On South Point Island, which is even more barren than Muskeget 
and entirely without fresh water, I found the following seven flower¬ 
ing plants. 
Ammophila arenaria Linn., Atriplex hastata Linn., Lepidium vir- 
ginicum Linn., Cakile edentula (Bigel.), Lathy r us maritimus 
(Linn.), Euphorbia polygonifolia Linn., Solidago sempervirens 
Linn. 
The indigenous vertebrate fauna of Muskeget is neither varied 
nor extensive, but consists of one batrachian, ten breeding birds, and 
two mammals only. 1 The toad common along the Massachusetts 
coast is abundant and prefers the dryer parts of the island. Of the 
birds breeding on Muskeget the terns (three species) are by far the 
most numerous, the colony being in a flourishing condition on 
account of the protection it has received during the past few years. 2 
Sterna hirundo and S. dougalli occur in about equal numbers, but 
S. paradisaea is comparatively rare. The only nests of the latter 
positively identified were on Smith’s Beach. Young birds in the 
‘Sterna portlandica ’ plumage, which are much more easily recog¬ 
nized than the adults, were, however, occasionally seen among the 
terns on Muskeget. The laughing gulls breed in moderate numbers, 
placing their nests in the denser beach grass or among the pea vines. 
Of the other breeding birds two were Limicolae , the rest land birds. 
During the first week in July the young of Actitis macularia and 
Aegialitis meloda were running about the beaches scarcely able to 
fly. In the salt marsh was a small 
dacutus. A. sandwichensis savanna occupied the edge of the salt 
marsh and the dry interior of the island indifferently, thus associat¬ 
ing both with the sharp-tailed finches, and with the meadow larks 
and song sparrows that occurred sparingly throughout the dryer 
ground. Two pairs of red-winged blackbirds nested in the cat-tails 
about one of the small ponds. Crows, kingbirds, barn swallows, 
1 Baird mentions a specimen of Blarina brevicauda from Muskeget (Mam. N. Amer., 
p. 40). It is very doubtful whether the animal occurs there now, as I could find no trace 
of it. It is common on Martha’s Vineyard, and I have taken it on Nantucket. 
^For descriptions of the Muskeget tern colony, see Brewster, Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, 4, 
p. 13-22, Jan., 1879; Mackay, Auk, 12, p. 32-18, Jan., 1895; ibid., 13, p. 47-55, Jan., 189G. 
colony of Ammodramus can- 
