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.