Common Terns at Titchfield Haven Nature reserve. A picture-heavy post. (includes some Red Shank & Black-headed gulls).

Common Terns are silvery-grey and white birds with long tails that have earned them the nickname sea-swallows They are graceful flight and frequently hover over water before plunging down for fish. They are often noisy. Each year nesting colonies are good at Titchfield Haven. UK breeding:12,000 pairs. I always look forward to their arrival in April and notice their absence when they leave in late August or early September. They migrate South to Africa after the breeding season.