Rondeau Ric

Royal terns, Texas, Jan 24, 2012. Big east wind for the 3rd day which means fewer birds in the yard. This is from the archives. Thalasseus maximus Royal Tern chicks leave the nest scrape within one day after hatching and congregate in a group known as a crèche (“nursery”), which can contain thousands of chicks ranging in age from 2–35 days old. Each Royal Tern parent feeds only its own chick, finding it in the crowd probably by recognizing its call.

A large, orange-billed tern, the Royal Tern is found only along ocean beaches. We saw this one on the gulf coast in Texas. The Royal Tern makes its nest scrape on the ground on low-lying islands. The pair defecates directly on the nest rim, perhaps to reinforce the nest against flooding. After a few weeks, the nest rim hardens. Thalasseus maximus

Does he remind you of Mr. Burns? , a photo by ricmcarthur on Flickr. Personally, I don't watch the Simpsons, but my kids used to and I would catch little bits of the program. This Royal tern reminds me of the character. Scientific stuff - Thalasseus maximus A large, orange-billed tern, the Royal Tern is found only along ocean beaches. The Royal Tern makes its nest scrape on the ground on low-lying islands. The pair defecates directly on the nest rim, perhaps to reinforce the nest against flooding. After a few weeks, the nest rim hardens. Young Royal Terns leave the nest scrape within one day after hatching and congregate together in a group known as a crèche. Eventually all of the chicks in a colony come to the crèche, which can have thousands of chicks ranging in age from two to 35 days old. A pair of Royal Terns will feed only their own chick, and manage to find it in the crowd, probably by recognizing its call. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/royal_tern/id

YOU were supposed to ask for directions. , a photo by ricmcarthur on Flickr. So where is everybody else. These are royal terns in non-breeding plumage. Seen on South Padre Island, Texas Thalasseus maximus