The Least Tern:
A Small But Determined Bird
Photos by Pamela Cohen
By Christine Sudell
30
A
long with warm sunny days and soft breezes, spring on Kiawah
brings the return of its smallest seabirds, the least terns. These
diminutive birds earned their name by being the littlest of the terns.
They weigh in at only about an ounce to an ounce and a half with
bodies approximately nine inches long. In comparison, the largest tern weighs as
much as 24 ounces and measures up to 23 inches long.
Young birds are a dusky color with brown markings on their backs. When they
reach one to two years of age they take on the black, gray and white plumage
of adults. Males and females look the same except that the females are slightly
smaller. With slender bodies and long forked tails, least terns present a streamlined
appearance when standing. In flight, their 20-inch wingspan gives these aviators a
graceful look.
Those long wings come in handy when they feed. Eating mostly small fish, they
fly along the surface of the water or dive into it from the air to catch their prey. In
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