Mass small tern movement (NSW)

["Sharon Rusk" <>]

Hi!
The White -fronted Terns have been present on the coast for a few weeks now, 
but not in the numbers Barbara gave. There has also been, what I believe to 
be either flocks of Common Diving- Petrels or Little Shearwaters. These 
birds are always just out of good viewing range when the light & sea 
conditions are perfect, the minute it gets dark with big waves they come in 
tantalizingly closer  and  again it's difficult to ID,   actually I think 
they're just teasing me.
Cheers
Bob Rusk        --- Original Message ----- 
From: "Julian Robinson" <>
To: "Barbara Jones" <>; "canberra birds" 
<>
Sent: Saturday, July 12, 2008 10:01 AM
Subject: Mass small tern movement (NSW)


> Tobias photographed what he thought were young White-fronted Terns at Ben 
> Boyd NP on July 6.  Quite a few close photos of them immatures here ...
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/callocephalon/2651001453/ check the 
> discussion and then click on "Browse" under "Tobias N. Hayashi's 
> photostream"near top right of screen to see the others.
> Julian
>
> At 04:56 PM 11/07/2008, you wrote:
> > Hello all
> > Seabird observers please be on the watch along the NSW southern coast this 
> > weekend.
> > Gary Whitley at Tathra, Far South Coast NSW, this afternoon (July 11, 
> > 2008) observed thousands of small terns over a period of more than 15 
> > minutes, travelling south in a continuous line close to the water, seeming 
> > to scoop the surface, not dive, as they flew south.
> > I went with two others to the Merimbula Headland and waited for over an 
> > hour and a half but they did not reach there (or we missed them).
> > Further contact with Gary revealed that an hour after he saw them a 
> > 'goodly number' returned flying north, but not the same number as 
> > previously seen.
> > I am suggesting they were White-fronted Terns. Any further sightings or ID 
> > would be helpful please. My "Handbook of Australian Sea-Birds" (Serventy, 
> > Serventy and Warham 1970) refers to a similar 'invasion' on the southern 
> > NSW coastline on one day in 1959. Does anyone have other similar 
> > observations or information?
> > Barbara Jones
> >
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