Chinese Crested Tern

The Bernsteinseeschwalbe ( Thalasseus bernsteini ) is an extremely rare seabird of China and Taiwan. It was formerly classified in the genus Sterna. Due to a revision in 2005, it is now one of the genus Thalasseus. The specific epithet honors Heinrich Agathon Bernstein, who collected the type specimen for Hermann Schlegel.

Description

This slim, large tern reaches a length of 43 cm. She has a black hood, and generally a white plumage with pale gray wings. In flight, a sharp contrast between the pale gray upper wings and the black outer primaries can be discerned. The beak is amber in color with a black tip.

Dissemination

Previously, the Bernsteinseeschwalbe on the coasts of China, Taiwan, Thailand, Halmahera, Malaysia, Sarawak and the Philippines was widespread. Today, it occurs only on small offshore islands off Taiwan.

Endangering

In June and July 1937 21 specimens were collected on a small island off the coast of Shandong. Then it was considered extinct. In the years 1978 and 1991, there were unconfirmed reports of sightings in Hebei and Shandong. In June 2000, however, four couples and four young birds discovered a Chinese scientist in a group of other tern species on the Matsu Islands in the Taiwan Strait and filmed them.

It shall apply with a population of less than 50 copies as rarest tern in the world. The exact cause of their rarity and their way of life little is known. The wetlands, in which there were their breeding territories had soft in many places of agricultural use. In addition Seeschwalbeneier apply in China as a delicacy. Today, the area in which the new colony was discovered under strict conservation stands. Other areas such as the Sanjiaozhou Nature Reserve in Shandong and the Laem Talumphuk Non- Hunting Area in Thailand where this species was common in the past, are also strictly protected. In 2007, BirdLife International sounded the alarm because despite protective measures, the eggs are collected relentlessly and therefore an extinction of the species is to be feared within the next five years.

2010 you could photograph specimens in the Indonesian wintering area on Pulau Lusaolate north of Seram first time.