Alameda Point Environmental Report: Least Terns thriving this year at Alameda Point, June 16, 2013

Excerpt:

Three busloads of visitors to the nesting area were treated to a great show on the annual “Return of the Terns” day, June 15. The nesting area is on the Nature Reserve, located on the airfield of the former naval air station. Adult terns could be seen busily bringing small fish to their young, and doting on the young chicks as they scampered around the sandy colony. The cool temperatures of the day made it less stressful for the young birds.

The adults will continue bringing fish to their young and watching over them until they’re ready to fly south in early August. It looks like it will turn out to be a very good year for Alameda’s least tern colony, the largest in Northern California. Another tern colony is on the Hayward shoreline. The California Least Tern is an endangered species. The colony at Alameda Point is managed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.