Tristan da Cunha: Antarctic Terns
The desolate beach where we landed has a large colony of nesting Antarctic terns (Sterna vittata) and even more of them were flying all around the ship at sunset when we return from the landing. Antarctic terns are common all around the Subantarctic islands and further north to the Tristan archipelago. These guys, unlike the Arctic terns that look quite similar, don’t engage in long migrations. The terms are small seabirds, very elegant and graceful looking, with red or black hills and white body with grayish wings. They spend a lot of time at see, eating small fish and krill. They live up to 30 years, which is remarkable for such small birds.
