the Common Tern, and their more slender forms and
the great length of the tail-feathers satisfied me that I
saw the Roseate Tern for the first and, (as it has proved
to be) the only time. The peculiarities just mentioned
proved fatal to what I believe to be the only recorded
Norfolk specimen of this Tern : this specimen was given
to me by the friend who shot it, and I had the pleasure
of presenting it to the Norfolk and Norwich Museum.
From what I have just said, it is obvious that I am not
competent to tell anything of the general habits of this
species from personal observation, for, as a matter of
fact, I only saw one on the first day of my explorations
in Scilly, and two, possibly three, on a subsequent
occasion. For particulars concerning the nesting and
distribution of this Tern, I must therefore refer my
readers to our standard authorities, merely adding, from
one of these authorities, that it is much more abundant
in America than in Europe.
