The Least Tern is a small member of the interesting family - Sternidae. These skillful flyers get their food by flitting above the water and darting down to grab fish that appear at the surface.
They live from the southernmost United States to the northern third of South America.
As a species, it is not endangered, but the subspecies S. a. athalassos and S. a. brownii have been listed as endangered due to loss of breeding habitat.
Classification:
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Sternidae
Genus: Sternula
Species: S. antillarum
Photos:
Now That’s A Mouth Full! ~ Endangered Least Terns
"It is amazing to see these tiny atoms of life swallow whole sand eels www.gma.org/fogm/Ammodytes_americanus.htm that are longer than they are! The Least Tern chicks pictured are about the size of a lemon! Some chicks would walk around with the sand eel tail sticking out of their mouths for 30 minutes before being able to totally ingest the sand eel!"
Photo courtesy of William Dalton
Least Tern Toddler
"Least Tern Sterna antillarum One of the best things about our morning by the Least Tern nests was that we got to see all of the different stages of the tern development. There were of course the adults, but we also got to see newborn chicks, chicks who were a week or two old, and juveniles who were either fledged or very close to it. I think this little guy was on the cusp of earning his wings. Although he spent most of his time running, he did try some small hops at times."
Photo courtesy of martytdx
Ed. Note: You can get an idea from this photo why the terns and gulls are related to the sandpipers.
Least Tern (Sterna antillarum)
"Juvenile Least Tern at Oso Flaco Lake, San Luis Obispo County, CA on August 20, 2006. Digiscoped using a Nikon CoolPix 4100 and a Zeiss Diascope 85T FL spotting scope and 30x eyepiece."
Photo courtesy of almiyi
Least Tern (and minnow)
"Least Terns were having a ball diving at nearly 90 degrees for small minnows near low tide. Ding Darling NWR, SW Florida, USA. This one’s probably first-summer. VIEW LARGE to see minnow!"
Photo courtesy of Geoff Coe
Video:
Commentary:
Port of San Diego | Help Restore Endangered Bird Habitat on …
On January 17th from 9 am until noon, join the San Diego Audubon Society for a unique opportunity to improve nesting habitat for the endangered California Least Tern. The Audubon Society will … Read more…
Terns nesting on Giant store in Easton
The birds that nest on the roof of the Easton Giant are Least Tern. This species has taken to nesting on several flat-roofed buildings in the Chesapeake region due to a lack of sandy beaches un… Read more…
Lovable Least Terns at Lindbergh Field
Have you seen a California least tern lately? I bet you didn’t even know it, but as you approach San Diego International Airport from downtown on Harbor Drive, it’s possible to see least te… Read more…
The Least Tern is the smaller white bellied bird has been on the threatened species list since about 1973 there are only about 43000 of these tiny birds. The Least Tern nesting grounds s… Read more…
