Tara: White-Fronted Tern (4min read)
What do seabirds have to do with our gardens?
Good morning☀
I write a “Critter of the Month” column in our community newsletter, Palmerston Local, and am sharing it here with you today.
It’s about tara, or white-fronted terns (Sterna striata). When I visited Bluff last year I spent a wonderful, windy afternoon tucked up amongst the rocks observing a tara colony. It was September, just before breeding season, and I loved watching as they battled against the elements to catch whitebait offerings for potential mates.1
They are such beautiful birds! But what do they have to do with our gardens?
Well, it’s all about the guano (bird poo). Last year I attended a talk by Dr Amanda Black at the Wild Dunedin Festival where I learned about the importance of seabird guano to soil health. It is high in nitrogen (needed for rich, green growth of foliage) and phosphorous (especially important for young plants, encouraging root development).2
A recent study has even put a dollar value on seabird guano, estimating an annual worth of up to $1.1 billion.3
Seabirds come to land when they are nesting, and also fly over land. Many of Aotearoa’s seabirds are nocturnal4 and I can often hear them during the night - hopefully dropping some guano in my garden!🌳
The Hand Guide to the Birds of New Zealand5 lists 18 species of tern naturally occurring in Aotearoa, which includes two noddies and a ternlet. However, many of these are migrants from Australia, the Arctic, and occasionally even the northern hemisphere. The white-fronted tern, or tara, is the most widespread species in New Zealand.
They are small, elegant birds. Traditionally, Māori associate tara with high status “because of the birds’ beauty and grace”6. They have a black cap and beak, though as their name suggests they have a white throat and breast. Their tails are deeply forked which is particularly apparent in flight. During breeding, their black cap extends further down their back, and lower to cover their eyes. You can see them in large flocks on our coasts, and possibly further up-river in search of food.
Tara eat small fish, including larvae like whitebait, diving from up to ten metres above the ocean’s surface. Their forked tail enables them to manoeuvre with precision, as catching such small prey means they need to be extremely accurate.
Their hunting skills are also used during courtship. Males will catch prey to impress potential female mates, and successful pairs will stay together for life. Breeding occurs in large colonies, with nesting sites usually changing from year to year.
Eggs will be laid from late spring through to summer in natural depressions in the rock, called a nest scrape, generally without any additional nesting material. Their mottled eggs are highly variable in colour to camouflage with the colours of the nest scrape material.
At this time of year some of our younger white-fronted terns will be escaping the cold and flying to Australia for the winter, though most of them will brave the weather to remain here. They are a native species and their population has declined markedly in recent decades due to predation, habitat loss, and human disturbance. ‘
They favour coastal waters and harbours, so look out for them next time you’re at the beach.
Happy winter,
Zenobia❄
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Robertson, H. et al (2000). The Hand Guide to the Birds of New Zealand. Penguin Group.
A great read as usual, Zenobia. I learn so much from your writing