Part 149

Bill rich carmine in its basal half, the rest black; feet carmine; upper plumage deep brownish-black; secondary quills and four or five of the primaries tipped with white, the latter on the inner web chiefly; tail-feathers black, broadly margined on both sides with white, the outer more extensively; the middle tail-coverts black, the lateral black on the inner, and white on the outer web; a broad band of white over the forehead, extending to the fore part of the eye; cheeks and throat of the same colour; the rest of the neck, and lower parts in spring and autumn of a delicate cream-colour; axillary feathers, lower wing-coverts, and a large portion of the secondary quills, white, the coverts along the edge of the wing black. Female smaller, similar to the male, but with the tail-feathers white, excepting a longitudinal band including the shaft. After the first autumnal moult, there is on the hind part of the neck a broad band of white mottled with greyish-black; the lower parts pure white, the upper of a duller black; bill and feet less richly coloured.

Male, 20, 48. Female, 16-3/4, 44-1/2.

During winter, in vast multitudes on the coast of Florida. In summer dispersed in large flocks from Texas to New Jersey, breeding on sand beaches or islands. In the evenings and at night ascends streams sometimes to the distance of one hundred miles.

Black Skimmer or Shear-water, Rhynchops nigra, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. vii. p. 85.

Rhincops nigra, Bonap. Syn. p. 352.

Black Skimmer, Nutt. Man. v. ii. p. 264.

Black Skimmer or Razor-billed Shear-water, Rhynchops nigra, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. iv. p. 203.

GENUS II. STERNA, Linn. TERN.

Bill longer than the head, rather stout or slender, nearly straight, compressed, very acute; upper mandible with the dorsal line slightly arched, the ridge rather broad and convex at the base, gradually narrowed toward the end, sides convex, edges sharp and direct, tip acute; nasal groove short; lower mandible with the angle very narrow, acute, extending to the middle, the dorsal line straight, the sides slightly convex, nearly erect, the sharp edges inflected, the tips very acute. Nostrils basal, lateral, linear, direct. Head rather large, oblong; neck of moderate length and thick; body slender. Feet short, moderately stout; tibia bare for a considerable space; tarsus short, roundish, covered all round with small scales; first toe very small, third longest, fourth a little shorter; anterior toes connected by emarginate webs. Claws slightly curved, compressed, acute. Plumage soft, close, blended, rather compact on the back and wings. Wings extremely long, narrow, and pointed, the first quill longest, the rest rapidly graduated. Tail long, generally forked, of twelve feathers. Tongue very slender, tapering, with the point slit; œsophagus extremely wide; proventricular belt complete; stomach rather small, moderately muscular, with the epithelium dense and longitudinally rugous; intestine of moderate length, rather narrow; cœca small.

429. 1. Sterna Cayana, Lath. Cayenne Tern.

Plate CCLXXIII. Male.

Bill longer than the head, stout; wings longer than the tail, which is moderately forked; bill carmine; feet black; upper part of the head and occiput greenish-black; back and wings light greyish-blue; primary quills bluish-grey on their outer webs, darker on the outer part of the inner, their inner part white, as are the ends and inner webs of the secondaries; upper tail-coverts and tail greyish-white; all the other parts pure white.

Male, 19, 44.

From Texas, in spring, to the Floridas, where it breeds on the Tortugas. Labrador, but not observed in the intermediate parts of the Atlantic coast. Abundant. Migratory.

Sterna cayana, Bonap. Syn. v. ii. p. 353.

Cayenne Tern, Nutt. Man. v. ii. p. 208.

Cayenne Tern, Sterna cayana, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. iii. p. 505; v. v. p. 639.

430. 2. Sterna Anglica, Montagu. Gull-billed Tern.--Marsh Tern.

Plate CCCCX. Male.

Bill about the length of the head, stout; wings longer than the tail, which is moderately forked; bill and feet black; upper part of the head and occiput greenish-black; sides of the head, fore neck, and all the lower parts, white; upper parts pale greyish-blue, edges of the wings whitish; primaries hoary on the outer web, deep grey on the inner, their shafts and those of the tail-feathers white; the tail of a paler tint than the back, and the outer feather nearly white.

Male, 14, 34.

Cosmopolite. In America, breeds from the mouth of the Mississippi to Connecticut. Not abundant. Migratory.

Marsh Tern, Sterna aranea, Wils. Amer. Orn. v. viii. p. 143.

Sterna aranea, Bonap. Syn. p. 354.

Marsh Tern, Sterna anglica, Nutt. Man. v. ii. p. 269.

Marsh or Gull-billed Tern, Sterna anglica, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. v. p. 127.

431. 3. Sterna Cantiaca, Gmel. Sandwich Tern.

Plate CCLXXIX. Adult.