Baby Tern Graduates to Shore Bird Box

August 14, 2009: This little tern, a Least Tern, is growing rapidly. When I arrived at IBRRC on Tuesday, August 11, he had already been transferred to a shore bird box in Holding 1, our main hospital room. He has graduated from his incubator in ICU. Look closely, and you will see that his feathers are growing out.

When he is an adult, he will be 8 to 9 inches long, have a black "crown" on his head, a snowy whiter underside and forehead, grayish back and wings, orange legs, and a yellow bill with a black tip.

In his new domicile, there is sand and gravel spread over the floor. There are dishes of meal worms, slivered smelt, and live minnows. A ceramic heat lamp, feather duster, and mirror are in the left hand corner, front. In the left corner, back, there is a full-spectrum light so he is not sitting in the dark during the day.

According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Least Tern is an endangered species.

Source: http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/profile/speciesProfile.action?spcode=B07N

From the Smithsonian: "This tiny tern once was considered the perfect size to adorn ladies' hats during the late 1800s. Least terns were collected by the thousands from the Atlantic coast for this decorative purpose, only to frighteningly diminish their numbers..." Read more at

http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ConservationAndScience/MigratoryBirds/Featured_Bird...

Please support International Bird Rescue Research Center

http://www.ibrrc.org/

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• Baby
• chick
• Least
• Tern
• IBRRC
• bird
• pelagic
• nature
• wildlife
• endangered
• Petite
• Sterne
• Charrán
• mínimo
• Golondrinita
• marina
• Gallito

[MyWildlifeVideos]

@SPASconservation Good question! He was moved to an outdoor aviary and was able to catch his own food (small, live fish). He also passed his flight test. He was glad to leave and start his new life. :)

[SPASconservation]

So what happened? Was your LETE released? Did it learn to catch its own food? This year we are stewarding Least Tern colonies on our Pinellas County FL rooftops, banding those that fall off before returning them to their rooftops, and are experimenting with pole-mounted cameras.

[MyWildlifeVideos]

Our Least Tern has graduated! He is on his way to our SoCal IBBRC, where he will be released. Terns are migrating south, and we're giving him a ride part of the way. When he arrived at our hospital, he weighed only 4 grams. He's close to 45 grams now.

[MyWildlifeVideos]

He's very cute, but our goal is to return him to the wild as soon as he is ready. All of his feathers must be grown out, he must pass a flying test, and he must be able to catch and eat his own food.

[anmoose]

Amazing work these people do! Will he be returned to the wild when he's ready, or is he too precious to take such a risk?