206 B L A C K SKIMMER.
glide in this manner in search ot' prey over a long salt-marsh bayou, .or
inlet, following the whole of its sinuosities, how and then lower themselves
to ilio water, pass their bill along..the surface, ¡mi! on seizing :a
prawn or a small fish, instantly riso, munch and swallow it 011 wing,
While at Galveston Island, and in the company of my generous friend
EUWAKD HAKEis.and my son, ! dbserived three Blatìk Skimmers, whieh
having noticed, a Night Heron parsing.' over them, at .once rose in
the air, gave chase to it, and continued their pursuit for several hundred
yards, as if intent on overtaking it. Their -cries during thi.s.ehase
differed from .their usual, notes, and resembled the: barkings of a very
small-dog.
The flight of the Black-Skimmer is peiihaps more elegant than that
of any water bird, with which I am acquainted. . The great length of
itsnarrow.wings,its partially elongated-forked tail,Its thin body and extremely
.compressed.bill, Etffeappear contrived to assure it that buoyancy
of motion whirh one cannot but admire when he seesqit on wing. It is
able to maintain itself against-t^SiSheasiest -gale ; and I believe no instance
has boon recorded of ¡toy ibird of this species having been forced
inland by tin', most violent- storm. But,ito. observe the aerial,movements
of the Skimmer sto the?best advantage, ..yon must visit its haunts
in the lovo. season. Several males, excited by the ardour of their ilosires,
are soon .pursuing a yet ununited female. The coy one, shooting aslant
ito either side,. <ia>hes along.,with-marvellous speed, flying hither and
thither, upwards, downwards, in all directions,. Her suitors strive, to
overtake.[her; they emit their love-cries with vehemence ; }-o>i are
gladdened by thc-ir softly and tenderly,gnunci&ted ha, ha, or the hack,
hack, CM,,can, of the last in the. ¡chase, l.ike the female tlmy-aH-perform
the most curious, zigzags, as th.ey follow in ¿CJHSK pursuit, and as
each beau a t length passes; her in succession, he extends his wings for
an instant, and in a manner struts by her; side. Sometimes a flock is
.seen to leave it sand-bar, and fly off in a direct course, each individual
apparently intent on distancing his companions ; - and then their mingling
cries of ha, ha, hack, hack, cae, cm, Jjil the air. I once saw one of these
birds.fly round a whole flock that had alighted, keeping at the height
of about twenty yards, but ¡¡now and the» tumbling as if its wings had
suddenly failed, and -again almost .upsetting, in the manner of the
Tumbler Pigeon.
On the 5th of May 1837,1 was .much surprised to find a large floek
BLACK SKIMMER, 207
of Skimmers «lighted and .apparently asleep, on a dry grassy part of
the interior of Galveston .Island-in Texas,; while I was; watching some
marsh hawks that were breeding in the neighbourhood. On returning
so the shore, however,,1 found that the, Me>was «nch-higher than usual,
in consequence-of a recont severe -gale, and had severed all (he sand
banks on which I had at other times observed them resting'bv day. "
The instinct or sagacity wlùch enables the-Kayor-Mlls, after being
scattered in all ¡directions inquest of food during à Ions-night, often at
great distances from Each other, to congregate again towards morning,
previously U. their alighting.on a spot «0 rest, lias .appeared to me truly
wonderful ; and I have been tempted to believe that the place Of rendezvous
tad boon agreed upon the evening before. 'They have a great
enmity towards On,«* and Turkey Buzzards'when at their breeding
-ground, and on thé first'appearance ..tHliese initraudors, some dozens of
Skimmers at -one« give -chase to them, -rarely desisting until quite out
Although parties of these -birds remove from t ho south to -betake
themselves to the êàMtern shores, and breed there, -they seldom arrive
at-Great Egg Harbour before the middle of May,-or-deposit their eggs
UI,til a month aftorj- or :nbout the period when, i s t « « Kfflridas and on
the coast of Georgia and South Carolina, -the -young are1 hatched. To
th«se latter section's of tfci country we will-return, Reader, to observe
their actions at-this interesting,-period. Were i to speak of the vast
numbers -that 'congregate fcir th« 'purpose- of breeding, some ,of my
reaflërS might »»ive-ths-atecownt with -as little favour as they have aloeordêdte
that which I have .givenof the»ild.pigeons; and therefore
I will present you with a Statement % my friend the Rev.-JOHN
BACHMAN, which he has inserted in my journal. " These birds are
very "abundant, and breed in great numbers on the sea islands at Bull's
Bay. Probably twenty thousand noiîts were seen at a tinie. The
sailors collected an enormous number of their eggs. The birds screamed
all the while, and whenever a Pelican or Turkey .Buzzard passed near,
they assailed it by hundreds, pouncing on the back of the latter, that
came to rob. them of their eggs, and pursued them fairly out of sight
They had kid onthe dry sand, and the following mOrning-we observed
many fresh-laid eggs, when some had been removed the previous afterno,
m.*' Then, Reader, judge of the deafening angry cries of such a
multitude, and see them all over your head begging for mercy as i t