S T E 
?. Sterna Philippina, or Philippine tern.—Claret-grey; 
cap white; band through the eyes, wings, tail, bill, and 
legs, black..—It is found on the shores of the Philippine 
islands; and is about twice as large as the common 
swallow. 
8. Sterna simplex, or simple tern.—Above plumbeous; 
beneath, crown, greater and middle wing-coverts, white; 
band behind the ears and quill-feathers black. A variety 
has the bill and legs black. The bill and legs are red; some 
of the wing-coverts edged with brown.—It inhabits Cayenne; 
and is fifteen inches long. 
9. Sternanilotica, or Egyptian tern.—Cinereous; beneath 
white; head and neck with blackish spots; orbits black, 
dotted with white. The bill is black; and the legs of a 
flesh colour.—It inhabits Egypt; and is above the size of a 
common dove. 
10. Sterna cantiaca, or Sandwich tern.—White ; back 
and wings hoary ; cap black ; front with white spots; quill- 
feathers blackish, with a white shaft. The bill is black, but 
yellowish at the tip; the legs are black ; wings longer than 
the tail; the egg is of an olive-brown, with purplish and 
crowded spots: it is full eighteen inches long, and is found 
on the Kentish coast, generally appearing about Romney 
in the middle of April, and leaving the country in Sep¬ 
tember. It is rather common at Sandwich, where it was 
first noticed by Mr. Boys. There are two varieties of this 
species: 1. Tail hardly forked ; body variegated; ears with 
a black spot. 2. Above black, varied with paler colours; 
beneath white; tail forked; bill and legs black..—This last 
is found in Finland. 
11. Sterna hirundo ; common, or greater tern.—.The two 
outer tail-feathers are half black and half white. There is 
a variety that has black legs; outer tail-feathers entirely 
white. The greater tern is about thirteen inches from the 
tip of the bill to that of the toes; its breadth, when the 
•wings are spread, is about two feet. It is of a slender but 
elegant form, which is increased by the beautiful plumage 
with which it is adorned. The back is covered with a grey 
mantle; the breast is of pure white, elegantly contrasted 
with a large black spot upon the crown of the head, re¬ 
sembling a hat; the bill and legs are red. Early in the 
spring this species arrives on our own coasts, and sometimes 
is seen a considerable way from the shore, in the interior 
parts of the country, hovering about the lakes and rivers. 
They are observed by sailors during the whole passage from 
Britain to Madeira. They are the most active fishers of all 
the aquatic tribes; instantaneously darting upon the prey 
which they observe from a great height in the air. After 
having dived and caught the booty, they as suddenly rise 
again to their former elevation. 
The action of the stomach -which this tribe exhibits is 
amazingly powerful; the fish being so completely digested 
in an hour, that the bird is ready to swallow a new meal. 
Those parts of the food that are nearest the bottom of the 
stomach are dissolved, and make way for the rest, which soon 
undergoes the same process. 
Immediately after the arrival of this species of the tern, 
the pairing season commences; during which each female 
chooses a warm bed of sand, where she deposits three eggs, 
of a size lar superior to what might be expected from a 
bird of her dimensions. The eggs of the tern are of dif¬ 
ferent colours, some grey, others brown, and some of a 
greenish hue. The manner in which their eggs are hatched 
is as singular as their external appearance, for it isliccom- 
plished chiefly by the heat of the sun. If the weather be 
dry and warm, the female seldom hatches by day, but re¬ 
sumes her maternal functions regularly about the time that 
the influence of the sun begins to decrease. 
The young are not all protruded at the same time, but 
in the order in which the eggs were laid; and at the interval 
of a day between each of the three birds. The young 
terns are no sooner protruded from the shell, than they 
leave the nest, and follow the parent bird, who supplies 
them with small morsels of the fish upon which they them¬ 
selves feed. During the whole period of incubation, the 
Vot, XXIII. No. 1592. 
S T E 577 
parent birds display great solicitude for the safety of their 
eggs and their young. Should a person at this period 
approach their nest, both parents dart down from the air, 
and flutter about him, uttering all the while the most 
piercing screams, expressive at once of their fear, anxiety, 
and rage. These paternal cares soon cease; the young 
soon become capable of pecking their own food when pro¬ 
vided for them. For a few days they are fed by the mother’s 
bill; afterward, what food the parents provide, they be¬ 
stow without even alighting upon the ground. Fond of 
indulging in their aerial excursions, they drop down the 
food upon their young, that are waiting below to re¬ 
ceive it. 
Terns are provided with very large wings, and from this 
very circumstance the young are not soon able to fly, their 
wings not being strong enough to accommodate them for 
flight. In this circumstance they resemble the swallow, 
which remains longer in the nest than any bird of its size, 
and leaves it more completely feathered. During this 
period of nonage, the parent terns continue to shower down 
plentiful supplies of food to their young, who at a very 
early period begin to dispute for their prey, displaying that 
insatiable gluttony which characterizes their race. The 
colour of the first plumage is a whitish-grey ; the true colour 
is not obtained till after the first moulting. 
12. Sterna minuta, or lesser tern.—Body white; back 
hoary; front and eye-brows white.—-It is found in divers 
parts of Europe and America; and is of small size. 
13. Sterna striata, or striated tern.—White; hind-head 
and nape black; body above and wings with transverse black 
streaks. The bill is black; the legs are of a lead colour.— 
It inhabits Zealand. 
14. Sterna vittata, or wreathed tern.—Cinereous; crown 
black; surrounded with white; the rump, vent, and tail, are 
white; the bill is red, and legs tawny. A variety has a 
cinereous tail, with white spots.—It is found in Nativity 
island. 
15. Sterna spadicea, or brown tern.—-Reddish-brown; 
vent white; bill and claws black; tail and quill-feathers 
dusky; the secondaries tipt with white.—It inhabits Cayenne, 
and is fifteen inches long. 
16. Sterna fuscata, or dusky tern.—Body blackish, without 
spots; bill brown, and legs red.—It is found in the island of 
Hispaniola. 
17. Sterna fissipes.—Black; back cinereous; belly white; 
legs reddish.—It inhabits in different parts of Europe anti 
America; and is about ten inches long. 
STE'RNAGE, s. The steerage or stern. Not used. 
STERNBERG, a town of the Austrian States, in Moravia; 
13 miles north-north-east of Olmutz. It is well built, with 
large houses, wide streets, and a spacious square. It con¬ 
tains 8000 inhabitants, employed chiefly in manufacturing 
woollen, linen, and canvas. It is a thriving place, and its 
population has for some time back progressively increased. 
Lat. 49. 40. N. long. 17. 13. E. 
STERNBERG, a small town of Germany, in the grand 
duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, principality of Wenden, 
near a small lake. It contains 1300 inhabitants, and is, 
alternately with Malchin, the place of assembling for 
the diets of the grand duchy; 18 miles south-east of 
Wismar. 
STERNBERG, a small town of the Prussian province of 
Brandenburg; 23 miles south-east of Custrin, and 20 east of 
Frankfort. Population 800. 
STERNDALE, Earl, a township of England in Derby- 
shire; miles south-east of Buxton. 
STERNE (Laurence), the son of Roger Sterne, a lieu¬ 
tenant in the army, and grandson of Sterne, archbishop of 
York, was born at Clonmell, in Ireland, in November 1713, 
put to school at Halifax in 1722, and entered at Jesus Col¬ 
lege, Cambridge, in 1732, with a view to the church. After 
he had taken orders, he was presented to the living of Sut¬ 
ton, in Yorkshire, through the interest of his uncle, Dr. 
Sterne, prebendary of York. In 1741 he was married, and 
by the same uncle’s interest obtained a prebend in York ca- 
7 H thedral. 
