Breeding adults. Photo: Lorraine Minns/Audubon Photography Awards
Thalasseus sandvicensis
| Conservation status | Probably went through serious decline in late 1800s when eggs were harvested from many colonies. Has made a slow comeback in many areas, but still uncommon. Still vulnerable to disturbance or destruction of nesting sites. |
|---|---|
| Family | Gulls and Terns |
| Habitat | Coastal waters, jetties, beaches. Favors warm waters near coastlines, often fairly shallow areas such as bays and estuaries near extensive beaches, mudflats. Sometimes forages farther out to sea. Nests on sandy islands, beaches, sandbars, in coastal lagoons or offshore. |
Forages by plunging headfirst into water from flight (often hovering first), and emerging immediately with fish held in bill. Sometimes catches insects in flight.
1-2, rarely 3. Pale cream, blotched with black, brown, gray. Incubation is by both parents, 21-29 days. Young: If colony subject to disturbance, young may leave nest after a few days and gather in group (called "creche") with others. Young bird recognizes its own parents by voice, comes out of creche to be fed when they approach. Age at first flight about 28-32 days; young may remain with parents another 4 months.
If colony subject to disturbance, young may leave nest after a few days and gather in group (called "creche") with others. Young bird recognizes its own parents by voice, comes out of creche to be fed when they approach. Age at first flight about 28-32 days; young may remain with parents another 4 months.
Mostly fish. Feeds mainly on smaller fish, such as sand lance and mullet; also eats shrimp, squid, marine worms, and many insects.
Usually first breeds at age of 3-4 years. Nests in colonies, very often associated with Royal Terns. Early in courtship, high spiraling flight with long descending glides. On ground, male feeds fish to female; both birds may point bills up, droop wings, turn heads from side to side. Nest site is on ground in open spot. Nest (built by both sexes) is shallow scrape, sometimes lined with bits of debris.
Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect this bird’s range in the future.
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