Tern-riffic Terns!

I think I may have set the world record just now for "Worst Pun Ever," in that title.  Hopefully, my humor will take at " Least a Tern," for the better, but f-tern now I think it'll just stay ternrable as evtern.

Enough of the blabber.


Have you got what it takes to be a tern?

1. Super Eyesight

Spotting a fish the size of a potato chip from two stories above doesn't sound too hard. But spotting it in a almost pitch-black body of water six foot deep ? Sounds pretty difficult!

2. Super Flying/Diving Skills

Once terns spot their possible dinner in the water, they have to be able to hover right above it before plopping into the water and grabbing it out. How in the world they manage to pick out their prey while doing that is a question I'll never know the answer to.

Cute to you, deadly predator to fish.

3. Super Stamina

Terns undergo some of the longest migrations in the Animal Kingdom. Some Arctic Terns migrate from the North Pole area to the South Pole every spring and fall- an extremely tough journey.

A group of Royal Terns. Royal Terns don't migrate very far, but they are cool-looking. 

A tern.

4.  Super Criminal and Defense Skills

 I have seen and heard of terns stealing (or at least trying to steal) everything from everyone: fish the size of pancakes from cormorant's mouths, paperclip-sized fish from other terns, fish fillet sandwiches from humans, you get the idea. But in the fishy (Haha get it?) criminal world, you have to be on the lookout too- skuas and large gulls all bully terns into giving up their food all the time.

5.Super Social Skills

Most terns nest in huge colonies-they're not afraid of each other, unlike many humans.
If you think the crowds at Thanksgiving parades are aggravating, wait until you see the crowded conditions of a tern colony.

Video from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology

My own cruddy picture of a (much smaller) tern colony. This picture only shows a small section of the entire village. 

Happy 4th! Hope you enjoyed today's post. School is out and summer is in, so I'll be able to get the posts going more often!

-chiccadee