NESTING OF THE LITTLE AND COMMON TERNS, &c. 241
have quite by chance stumbled on the colony of Common Terns
and Black-headed Gulls recorded by Mr. T. Hepburn in The
Zoologist 1910, and again by Mr. W. B. Nichols in British Birds,
(vol. vii., 1913).
I have seen no reference in print to the colony of Little Terns
with which I have dealt.
With regard to the status of Essex Terns, Mr. Miller Christy
in his Birds of Essex states "Common Tern : An uncommon
summer visitor, which used to breed on our coast, but does not
now do so." "Little Tern : A summer migrant which used to
breed commonly on the Essex coast, though I only know of a
single breeding colony at the present time."
Apparently the colony of Little Terns referred to by Mr.
Miller Christy is not the one dealt with in this note.
We can now say with certainty that the Common Tern still
nests in Essex, and I think that the presence of the Little Tern
at such a date points to the probability of its breeding, and I hope
at some time to be able to prove that the nesting colony of 1912
has not been entirely destroyed.
My visit was mainly devoted to the Terns, but the following
species which I identified are not without interest, Corn Bunting,
Red-backed Shrike, Blackcap, Spotted Flycatcher, Turtle
Dove (again found to be exceedingly common, whilst in some
parts of Essex it is decidedly otherwise), Yellow Wagtail,
Redshank (very numerous and no doubt nesting), Shelduck
(said to nest, which is very likely, but evidence is required), and
Curlew.
Essex Hydroids.—Our member, Mr. F. J. Lambert, has
kindly supplied the Club's Museum with, among other specimens,
the following living hydrozoans, collected by himself at Southend-
on-Sea, or neighbourhood, during the winter of 1920-21, viz. :—
Clava multicornis, Forsk. Campanularia flexuosa, Alder.
Tubularia larynx, Ellis and Solander.
Actinogonium pusillum, van. Ben. Gonthyrdea Loveni, Allm.
Obelia dichotoma, Linn. Sertularia pumila, Linn.
In view of the meagre records of Hydrozoa from Essex waters
it seems desirable to publish the above, which have been deter-
mined by Mr. A. K. Totton, of the British Museum (Natural
History).—Percy Thompson.
P