Part 77

Bill light blue, dusky towards the end. Iris brown. Feet light blue; claws black. Head and neck brownish-grey, streaked with blackish-brown; the throat, and a band from the bill over the eye white. Fore part of back and scapulars brownish-grey, variegated with central markings and bars of blackish-brown; the hind part of the back brownish-grey with a gloss of olive. Wing-coverts grey with central lines of brownish-black; primary coverts and primary quills brownish-black, but the latter white in their basal half; outer secondaries white, inner like the scapulars. Lower wing-coverts dusky; breast and sides white, the latter undulatingly barred with brownish-black; abdomen and lower and upper tail-coverts white, some of them, however, with a few dusky bars. The four middle tail-feathers are barred with brownish-black and brownish-grey, the rest pale grey fading to white on the outer, and all more or less minutely mottled with pale brown.

Length to end of tail 15-1/4 inches, to end of wings 15, to end of claws 17-1/2; extent of wings 27-3/4; wing from flexure 8-1/4; tail 3-2/12; bill along the back 2-1/4; along the edge of lower mandible 2-4/12; tarsus 2-1/4; middle toe 1-5/12, its claw 1/4. Weight 7 oz.

Adult Female in winter. Plate CCLXXIV. Fig. 2.

In winter the upper parts are light brownish-grey, the fore part of the neck and the sides of the same colour but paler; the throat, breast, abdomen, and rump white; the lower and upper tail-coverts with a few undulated lines of brownish-grey; the wings as in summer; as is the tail, only that the middle feathers are grey.

Length 15-1/2 inches; wing from flexure 8-1/2; extent of wings 31; tail 3-1/4; bill along the back 2-7/12, along the edge of lower mandible 2-(6-1/2)/12; tarsus 1-7/12; middle toe 1-5/12, its claw 1/4. Weight 10 oz.

THE NODDY TERN.

STERNA STOLIDA, LINN.

PLATE CCLXXV.

About the beginning of May, the Noddies collect from all parts of the Gulf of Mexico, and the coasts of Florida, for the purpose of returning to their breeding places, on one of the Tortugas called Noddy Key. They nearly equal in number the Sooty Terns, which also breed on an island a few miles distant. The Noddies form regular nests of twigs and dry grass, which they place on the bushes or low trees, but never on the ground. On visiting their island on the 11th of May 1832, I was surprised to see that many of them were repairing and augmenting nests that had remained through the winter, while others were employed in constructing new ones, and some were already sitting on their eggs. In a great many instances, the repaired nests formed masses nearly two feet in height, and yet all of them had only a slight hollow for the eggs, broken shells of which were found among the entire ones, as if they had been purposely placed there. The birds did not discontinue their labours, although there were nine or ten of us walking among the bushes, and when we had gone a few yards into the thicket, thousands of them flew quite low over us, some at times coming so close as to enable us to catch a few of them with the hand. On one side might be seen a Noddy carrying a stick in its bill, or a bird picking up something from the ground to add to its nest; on the other several were seen sitting on their eggs unconscious of danger, while their mates brought them food. The greater part rose on wing as we advanced, but re-alighted as soon as we had passed. The bushes were rarely taller than ourselves, so that we could easily see the eggs in the nests. This was quite a new sight to me, and not less pleasing than unexpected.

The Noddy, like most other species of Terns, lays three eggs, which average two inches in length, by an inch and three-eighths in breadth, and are of a reddish-yellow colour, spotted and patched with dull red and faint purple. They afford excellent eating, and our sailors seldom failed to collect bucketfuls of them daily during our stay at the Tortugas. The wreckers assured me that the young birds remain along with the old through the winter, in which respect the Noddy, if this account be correct, differs from other species, the young of which keep by themselves until spring.

At the approach of a boat, the Noddies never flew off their island, in the manner of the Sooty Terns. They appeared to go farther out to sea than those birds, in search of their food, which consists of fishes mostly caught amid the floating sea-weeds, these Terns seizing them, not by plunging perpendicularly downwards, as other species do, but by skimming close over the surface in the manner of Gulls, and also by alighting and swimming round the edges of the weeds. This I had abundant opportunities of seeing while on the Gulf of Mexico.

The flight of this bird greatly resembles that of the Night Hawk when passing over meadows or rivers. When about to alight on the water, the Noddy keeps its wings extended upwards, and touches it first with its feet. It swims with considerable buoyancy and grace, and at times immerses its head to seize on a fish. It does not see well by night, and it is perhaps for this reason that it frequently alights on the spars of vessels, where it sleeps so sound that the seamen often catch them. When seized in the hand, it utters a rough cry, not unlike that of a young American Crow taken from the nest. On such occasions, it does not disgorge its food, like the Cayenne Tern and other species, although it bites severely, with quickly repeated movements of the bill, which, on missing the object aimed at, snaps like that of our larger Fly-catchers. Some which I kept several days, refused all kinds of food, became dull and languid, and at length died.

While hovering over us near their nests, these birds emitted a low querulous murmur, and, if unmolested, would attempt to alight on our heads. After a few visits, however, they became rather more careful of themselves, although the sitting birds often suffered us to put a hat over them. Like the Sooty Tern, this species incubates both day and night. The differences exhibited by Terns with respect to their mode of nestling and incubation, are great, even in the same neighbourhood, and under the same degree of atmospheric temperature. This species breeds on bushes or low trees, placing several nests on the same bush, or in fact as many as it will hold. The Sterna fuliginosa scoops out a slight hollow in the sand, under the bushes, without forming any nest, and incubates closely like the former. The Sandwich, the Cayenne, and the Roseate Terns, drop their eggs on the sand or the bare rock, and seldom sit upon them until evening, or during cloudy or rainy weather. The Cayenne, Sooty, and Noddy Terns differ greatly in their flight, their manner of feeding, and the extent of their migrations. The Tail of the Noddy is cuneate, instead of being forked, in which respect it differs essentially from that of the other species. Perhaps the naturalists who placed it in the same genus with the Roseate Tern, may have been nodding over their books.

Since writing the above account, I have read the article on this species by my esteemed friend Mr NUTTALL, and am surprised to find him state that “the Noddies breed in great numbers in the Bahama Islands, laying their eggs on the shelvings of rocks.” No authority is given for this, which I regret, because had he given the fact as observed by himself, it would have astonished me as much as my account of the breeding of the Noddy in the Tortugas may astonish others.

STERNA STOLIDA, Linn. Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 227.—Lath. Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 805.—Ch. Bonaparte, Synops. of Birds of the United States, p. 356.

NODDY, Nuttall, Manual, vol. ii. p. 285.

Adult Male. Plate CCLXXV.

Bill longer than the head, strong, slender, nearly straight, compressed, very acute. Upper mandible with the dorsal line slightly arched, the ridge broad and convex at the base, narrowed towards the end, the sides convex, the edges sharp and inflected, the tip acute. Nasal groove extended to beyond half the length of the bill, slightly deflected towards the edge; nostrils submedial, linear, direct, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle very narrow, acute, extending to the middle, the dorsal line straight, or very slightly concave, the sides convex, the sharp edges inflected, the tip extremely acute.

Head of moderate size, oblong, compressed; neck of moderate length; body slender; feet very short, rather stout. Tibia bare for a short space; tarsus very short, roundish, covered anteriorly with small scutella, laterally and behind with reticulated scales; toes slender, the first very small, the third longest, the fourth nearly as long, the second much shorter, all scutellate above, the anterior united by reticulated webs, having an incurved margin; claws curved, compressed, acute, that of hind toe smallest, of middle toe by much the largest, and having the inner edge thin and dilated.

Plumage soft, close, blended, very short on the head; the feathers in general broad and rounded. Wings very long, narrow, and pointed; primary quills tapering but rounded, the first longest, the rest rapidly graduated; secondaries short, broad, rather acute, the inner more tapering. Tail long, cuneate, of twelve tapering rounded feathers.

Bill black. Iris brown. Feet dull brownish-red, the webs dusky, the claws black. The general colour is sooty brown; the primaries and tail-feathers brownish-black; the upper part of the head greyish-white; a black spot anterior to and over the eye.

Length to end of tail 16-4/12, to end of wings 16-1/12, to end of claws 13-11/12; extent of wings 32; wing from flexure 10-10/12; tail 5-3/4; bill along the back 1-3/4, along the edge of lower mandible 2-1/4; tarsus (10-1/2)/12, middle toe 1-1/4, its claw (4-1/2)/12. Weight 4-3/4 oz.

STILL BECALMED.

On the 4th of June we were still in the same plight, although the currents of the Gulf had borne us to a great distance from the place where, as I have informed you, we had amused ourselves with catching Dolphins. These currents are certainly very singular, for they carried us hither and thither, at one time rendering us apprehensive of drifting on the coast of Florida, at another threatening to send us to Cuba. Sometimes a slight motion in the air revived our hopes, swelled our sails a little, and carried us through the smooth waters like a skater gliding on ice; but in a few hours it was again a dead calm.

One day several small birds, after alighting on the spars, betook themselves to the deck. One of them, a female Rice Bunting, drew our attention more particularly, for, a few moments after her arrival, there came down, as if in her wake, a beautiful Peregrine Falcon. The plunderer hovered about for a while, then stationed himself on the end of one of the yard-arms, and suddenly pouncing on the little gleaner of the meadows, clutched her and carried her off in exultation. But, Reader, mark the date, and judge besides of my astonishment when I saw the Falcon feeding on the Finch while on wing, precisely with the same ease and composure as the Mississippi Kite might shew while devouring high in air a Red-throated Lizard, swept from one of the magnificent trees of the Louisiana woods.

There was a favourite pet on board, belonging to our Captain, and which was nothing more nor less than the female companion of a cock, in other words, a common hen. Some liked her because she now and then dropped a fresh egg,—a rare article at sea, even on board the Delos; others, because she exhibited a pleasing simplicity of character; others again, because, when they had pushed her overboard, it gave them pleasure to see the poor thing in terror strike with her feet, and strive to reach her floating home, which she would never have accomplished, however, had it not been for the humane interference of our Captain, Mr JOSEPH HATCH of Kennebunk. Kind, good-hearted man! when, several weeks after, the same pet hen accidentally flew overboard, as we were scudding along at a furious rate, I thought I saw a tear stand in his eye, as she floated panting in our wake.—But as yet we are becalmed, and heartily displeased at old Æolus for overlooking us.

One afternoon we caught two sharks. In one of them, a female, about seven feet long, we found ten young ones, all alive, and quite capable of swimming, as we proved by experiment; for, on casting one of them into the sea, it immediately made off, as if it had been accustomed to shift for itself. Of another, that had been cut in two, the head half swam off out of our sight. The rest were cut in pieces, as was the old shark, as bait for the dolphins, which I have already said are fond of such food.

Our captain, who was much intent on amusing me, informed me that the rudder-fishes were plentiful astern, and immediately set to dressing hooks for the purpose of catching them. There was now some air above us, the cotton sheets aloft bulged out, the ship moved through the water, and the captain and I repaired to the cabin window. I was furnished with a fine hook, a thread line, and some small bits of bacon, as was the captain, and we dropped our bait among the myriads of delicate little fishes below. Up they came, one after another, so fast in succession, that, according to my journal, we caught three hundred and seventy in about two hours. What a mess! and how delicious when roasted! If ever I am again becalmed in the Gulf of Mexico, I shall not forget the rudder-fish. The little things scarcely measured three inches in length; they were thin and deep in form, and afforded excellent eating. It was curious to see them keep to the lee of the rudder in a compact body; and so voracious were they, that they actually leaped out of the water at the sight of the bait, as “sunnies” are occasionally wont to do in our rivers. But the very instant that the ship became still, they dispersed around her sides, and would no longer bite. I made a figure of one of them, as indeed I tried to do of every other species that occurred during this death-like calm. Not one of these fishes did I ever see when crossing the Atlantic, although many kinds at times come close to the stern of any vessel in the great sea, and are called by the same name.