(Sterna hirundo)
13 - 16 inches

photograph © Walker Golder

Status: Proposed for listing as Species of Special Concern.

Identification: This medium-sized tern has a black cap, gray wings and back that become noticeably darker toward the wing tips and white underparts. The legs are red and the bill is red at the base with a black tip. The upper primaries are gray, rather than silver like the ForsterŐs Tern. In late summer, the bill fades to black and the tern's black cap is reduced in size.

Nesting Habitat: Common Terns nest on barrier beaches, natural islands and shoals, and on marsh and dredged-material islands. Nesting substrate includes bare sand or shell, sparse to moderate herbaceous vegetation, saltmarsh and wrack.

Breeding Biology: Adults begin to arrive and initiate nesting activities at North Carolina colony sites in late April and early May. Egg-laying often begins by mid-May. If early nesting attempts fail, this species will renest until early July. Nests are shallow depressions, usually lined with shell fragments or vegetation and are often adjacent to debris. The extent of nest lining varies greatly. The females lay two to four olive, brown or pale greenish-brown eggs with dark brown blotches. Incubation requires 21 days, and chicks begin to fly at about four weeks of age. North Carolina colony sites are occupied from April to mid-August.

Food: Food consists primarily of small fish and shrimp, but can include insects, mollusks, small lizards and tadpoles.

State Nesting Population: Declining, approximately 1,000 nesting pairs.

Major Threats: Human disturbances during the nesting season, including off-road vehicles on beaches, recreation activity on beaches, unconstrained dogs and feral cats, plus loss of suitable nesting sites and habitat.

Waterbirds:
Next
Previous
Index Page

Pages created and managed by Modular Graphic Services, Wilmington, N.C.
Last Revision 5/21/98