Saunders's Tern

The Orientseeschwalbe ( Sternula saundersi ) is a seabird of the tern family ( Sternidae ). She was originally part of the genus Sterna, after a revision of the tern family, she was transferred to the genus Sternula 2005. The specific epithet honors the British ornithologist Howard Saunders, who wrote important contributions to the systematics of terns in the late 19th century.

Features

The Orientseeschwalbe reached a size 28-29 cm, a weight of 40 to 45 grams and a wingspan of 50 to 55 centimeters. She sees the little tern ( Sternula albifrons ) are very similar. From it the Orientseeschwalbe differs by the straight upper edge to the white forehead, the white coloration is not enough to behind the eyes, the slightly lighter gray top that contrasts more with the black outer primaries and through the gray rump and the gray coat. Legs and feet are dark yellow-olive. The third and fourth outer primaries are black with black stems. In Plain dress the top is darker than in breeding plumage. Aside from a darker binding to the secondaries the same juvenile birds of Orientseeschwalbe where the Little Tern.

Distribution and habitat

The breeding areas of Orientseeschwalbe located in the Red Sea to the north to Yanbu, south of Socotra, in the south of Somalia, and the eastern on the coasts of Saudi Arabia and Oman, along the shores of the Persian Gulf, east to eastern and north-western India and northwestern Sri Lanka, on the Addu Atoll in the Maldives, and probably on the Amiranten and the Seychelles. The wintering areas extend from the Red Sea south to Tanzania and Madagascar east through India to the Seychelles to the Malay Peninsula. The Orientseeschwalbe inhabited coasts, estuaries and lagoons. It is rarely found inland.

Way of life

The food of Orientseeschwalbe consists of small fish, crustaceans and molluscs. The Orientseeschwalbe captures its prey by diving shock, the often long rounds precede the hover. About the reproductive behavior only few data are available. In Karachi and Sri Lanka, the breeding season is in May. The Orientseeschwalbe forms small breeding colonies where the nests are 20 to 100 meters apart. The nesting sites are above the high tide line or in the Wadden Sea and are preferably located on small, heaped up by the wind sand hills to a plant or other object around. The nest may be located in a trough or the track of an animal, it may be bare or lined with shell fragments or small pebbles. The nest consists of two bright eggs.

Hiking

The migration routes of Orientseeschwalbe are not well researched. Outside the breeding season, the terns in the Red Sea were north of the Gulf of Aqaba, south along the East African coast to northern Tanzania, Madagascar, along the west coast of India, in Gujarat, Mumbai, in Lakshadweep and the Maldives and the Seychelles observed. In southern Thailand, the Malay Peninsula and the Straits of Malacca, the Orientseeschwalbe has been detected as rare Irrgast.

Status

The IUCN classifies the Orientseeschwalbe in the category " not at risk " ( least concern ) a. Data on their population size are not available. In Iran, there will be between 130 and 150 pairs. Due to the great similarity with the Little Tern the species is probably often overlooked. In the region of Karachi, she apparently is very common.