A HISTORY OF KENT to obtain food, and this field diet is varied during the day by that of the sea shore. To- wards sundown these birds are clamorous in the extreme. They utter incessantly their ' courlie ' cries, and these are further varied by pretty rippling ones. A flock in the far distance will rise up and fly past another at rest. This movement calls forth vociferous cries from the latter, who seem clearly to be asking them to stop and join their community, for the curlew loves company and is seldom seen alone at this time of the year. In this way they pass their time, waiting anxiously for the tide to lay bare the sands. From time to time messengers are sent out over the sea- wall to ascertain whether the sands are yet in view and their return is always welcomed with a great demonstration. Should the night be inclement they leave the exposed situation of the Lydd beach and retire inland to rest, seeking sheltered spots in Romney Marsh. By the end of September the majority have left ; only a few remain, frequenting the sands at low tide. When first they arrive near the coast they keep much to the pasture fields and seldom visit the shore line. A few re- main throughout the winter. I have an adult, obtained in December from the Cran- brook district. It has been obser'ed at Rain- ham throughout the summer (Prentis). On the Rainham marshes trained dogs are often employed by the fishermen and 'mud-diggers' to assist them in killing the small flocks of young birds on their arrival in August. A dog is sent out on the mud-flats, and as soon as the curlews see it they invariably attack it. The dog then retreats to the dyke where his master lies hidden, and the curlews, following up their success, soon fall victims to the en- sconced gunner. 230. Whimbrel. Numenlus phteopus (Linn.) Met with in spring and autumn — in May and again in September, but less frequently in the latter season. Their passage north- ward in spring is marked with extreme regularity every year. Mr. Prentis says : ' The 7th of May is the grand time for the whimbrels ; after staying a week or ten days they are all oflF together, not a single one being left behind. In the autumn they make no stay, flying high overhead we hear their clear whistle.' A few birds sometimes remain with us throughout the winter, especially on the south coast. 231. Black Tern. Hydrochelidonnigra{L n.) Locally, Black Kip. There is hardly any doubt that this tern bred in Romney Marsh before drainage and 298 cultivation was commenced. Now it is only a spring and autumn migrant, less common during the former season. In August and September I have met with small batches on migration, all immature birds, on the shore near Lydd. On 24 May 1896 I observed an adult pair following the sea-board near Rye. Storm-driven individuals sometimes occur far inland. An immature female, ob- tained at Marden, is in the Maidstone Museum. 232. Gull-billed Tern. Sterna anglica, Montagu. A rare spring visitor. There are two specimens from Lydd in the Plomley col- lection. 233. Caspian Tern. Sterna caspia^ Pallas. Like the last, a rare visitant. One was obtained near Lydd prior to 1845 (Thompson, Notebook of a Naturalist, p. 265). Some few years ago an individual was observed on the Medway in autumn by Mr. Prentis. 234. Sandwich Tern. Sterna eantiaea, J. F. Gmelin. A resident, though very locally distributed. I have found its nest in the county, but for obvious reasons I shall not mention the locality. This species was first discovered to be a British bird by Mr. Boys, who found it at Sandwich in 1784. 235. Common Tern. Sterna fluviatilis, Nau- mann. Locally, Kip. A resident, but locally distributed in its breeding haunts. The colonies on the Lydd beach have sadly diminished within the last few years. The restricted breeding area taken up by these terns is distinctly pre- judicial to the safety of their eggs. The children of the fishermen and coastguard oflScers soon discover these spots, and the eggs are taken for eating. The increased artillery practice over the Lydd beach has also a great deal to answer for in the diminution of this tern's breeding numbers. 236. Arctic Tern. Sterna macrura, Naumann. Immature birds have occasionally been ob- tained off the south coast in autumn, on their migration south. 237. Little Tern. Sterna minuta, Linn. Locally, Scurrit. A summer visitor. Breeds in small colonies on the Lydd beach, where it is more numerous than the common tern. All day long these little terns may be seen wending their flight
