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Common Tern Project

@commonternproject.bsky.social
1.1K followers 856 following 336 posts

Updates from the @ifv-whv.bsky.social's long-term individual-based study on common terns breeding at the Banter See in Wilhelmshaven; provided by me - Sandra. With a side of gull-billed terns from @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social's conservation project.

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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Such a joy today to watch the amazingly talented @co-la.bsky.social be celebrated as her art exhibition opened in advance of the Migratory Bird Days that will start next week.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Science Slam is my favourite of all NWDUG events we organize. And Wilhelmshaven agrees. For the 4th year in a row the event, kindly supported by @sfb1372.bsky.social, was sold out. Slamming it for the @ifv-whv.bsky.social were @sonamkulkarni.bsky.social & Phillipp. They were amazing!
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Oh no, I jinxed it... Now all our GPS-tracked birds seem to have made it to Africa. It's almost spring, right?
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
We’re having a bit of an empty-nest-syndrome here. T98 is the last of @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social gull-billed terns equipped with a GPS that’s still on the continent.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
I also thoroughly enjoyed watching ‘Watching people watching birds’, the quietude and message both speaking to me strongly. The trailer can be found here: www.loekenfranke.de/en/?p=3104
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Thank you, @dornitholges.bsky.social, for putting together another lovely annual meeting, hosted in a very pretty place and with a lot of support from @ccrowther.bsky.social. The part of the tern team that could make it this year thoroughly enjoyed it.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Coming up on the 25th: the NWDUG’s #scienceslam that will take place in #Wilhelmshaven. Kindly supported by Navisense and @sfb1372.bsky.social, there will be 6 youngsters presenting their science in the coolest of ways. Among them will be Phillipp & Sonam, two PhD students from @ifv-whv.bsky.social:
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Phillipp had a look, and 5 tagged adults flew by Albufera de Valencia. :-)
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
I can’t believe I am writing this, but chick T99 chose another route than his dad L43, and whereas dad seems to safely be hanging out in Spanish Laguna de Gallocanta, the GPS track of T99 suggests predation in Portugal. Here’s the position: maps.app.goo.gl/qHsMCT8HUzWm...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
H36 was the chick of logger-parent L46. But they were not traveling together. L46 left the continent on the 30th of August after having taken a different route:
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Dear Bluesky-friends, I am back to ask another favour. Gull-billed tern chick H36 has died close to Parque Nacional de Doñana. It seems to be on a small island in the Caño de Guadiamar: maps.app.goo.gl/Z195ha4z9zYY...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
‘Counting cases, conserving species: addressing highly pathogenic #avianinfluenza in wildlife’ – officially out now, and open access, in Biological Reviews. #HPAI #H5N1 doi.org/10.1002/brv....
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
New paper alert: making use of 40 years of measurements of POPs and mercury in eggs of oystercatchers and terns breeding in the Wadden Sea, we investigated whether pollutant levels differed between the two species and 17 sampling locations, and how they changed over time: doi.org/10.1016/j.en...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Such a wonderful evening, shared with @priscila-fernandes.bsky.social, connecting to birds through science and art. Her video 'A Voice and Nothing More' can be seen as part of the outdoor exhibition 'Into Nature: Haunted by Waters' in the Onlanden until 25/10/2026: intonature.net/outdoor-exhi...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
As part of the #B10K project, a gull-billed tern from Neufelderkoog is one of the birds of 350 species that has recently had its genome assembled. These genomes have now been released in Gigascience: doi.org/10.1093/giga...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
After hanging out at Parque Nacional de Doñana for a while, it has now happened: gull-billed tern fledgling H13 is the first of our ‘logger-babies’ to have left Europe. Sibling H12 has made its second move to France today, while mum L09 is still hanging out in the Netherlands. #theygrowupsofast
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Here's a little shout-out to our lovely volunteers Lotti & Louise, whose last day it is today. Thank you both so much for spending your voluntary year with us. It was great fun having you, and I am sure the pictured chick that you rescued is still grateful! ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Looks to me like the bird was shot in the middle of the field, then moved to the road and discarded. Before the arrow there was a long straight line of flight.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
In much better news: we have registered 50% more birds at the Banter See common tern colony this year than last! Mostly thanks to the amazing 2024 cohort coming back so strong this year. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Here’s an update on gull-billed tern L49, whose GPS showed us that it died in France while traveling south: although google street view suggested a power line might have been the problem, the corpse actually suggests that the bird has been shot.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
For anyone local: the @ifv-whv.bsky.social will have a stand at the Long Night of Science celebrated at the Botanical Garden tonight, and we’ll give two talks too. Come find us, we’ll be happy to see you!
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Current status of @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social's birds we deployed with a GPS logger : 7 birds are out of range, and 25 scattered across Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain and Portugal.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Question: do I know anyone near Nantes who would be willing to pick up a dead gull-billed tern and its logger? L49 has sadly been killed near a road. I’d be very grateful for a picture and the logger and would of course reimburse postage.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Last year I posted the photo on the left, showing how our Banter See terns are perhaps not so scared of the neighbour's scarecrow. This year I can add the photo on the right, showing how the scarecrows have lots of company. Bird shit all around showing how well everyone is fed. It's a good season. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
We branched out a little and contributed mercury measurements to this study on Arctic barnacle geese by Matteo Schiavinato et al, published in Environmental Pollution: doi.org/10.1016/j.en...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
The Banter See season is slowly drawing to a close. The first day of August ended with 717 birds being registered. Last year this time that number was 477.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
L38 is actually a male, and sadly it did not breed successfully this year. His eggs were predated:
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
It looks like the first logger bird of the project we share with @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social has left the continent. L38, after short stopovers in the Netherlands and France, was last recorded in Andalusia on the 25th of July. No more data points until next spring, I suppose.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Although the GPS loggers are teaching us lots of really cool things about the members of Central Europe's last gull-billed tern colony, sometimes the news is just the saddest:
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
The good news just keeps coming and coming today. Look at these sensational data provided by the tracking project we have with @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social!
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Two photos that make us very happy this morning – story below. :-)
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
See that cute gull-billed tern chick thinking of leaving the safety of the frog- and electric fence that allowed it to grow up behind? Well, it did, and with a logger, so that you can also see its first trip away from the colony on the right. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Out now & open access in Avian Pathology - a collaborative paper showing how highly pathogenic avian influenza (clade 2.3.4.4b euBB) was introduced, and led to high mortality, in breeding colonies of black-headed gulls and common terns in Germany in 2023: doi.org/10.1080/0307...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Some happiness for your feeds: Kamala with the two fledglings she reared with Bismarck this season. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
I thought this must be a unique situation, so went back to the database. Turns out it is just unique since I arrived here in 2013 and started working on the terns. In the early days of the long-term study there were more strong cohorts, making up large proportions of the population 2 years later.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
This graph is getting funkier and funkier every day: 39% of the ringed population is now made up by 2-yr-olds! And the current cohort is also still doing really well.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
After last year’s successful pilot study, GPS-tracking @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social's birds, we’re back at it this year. The lovely bird @harrykuipers.bsky.social photographed is L39, a 5-yr old female, breeding with 4-yr old R75 on nest 8. She laid two eggs that both hatched successfully.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Talking about the chicks... they are doing amazing! There is plenty of food around, so they are growing up fast, with the first ones having fledged this week and many more getting ready to follow that example.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Chick sampling was closely supervised by Ariella, this weekend. Ariella hatched in 2022, prospected in 2024, then started breeding with Vedran in 2025. Last year they fledged 1 chick, and this year things are looking good for fledging 2. 🥰
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Hosted 25 kids at the museum this morning. 10 interviews are in the pocket, and the next event is planned too. One of the kids drew me this card as a thank-you. Mission accomplished. :-)
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
The 2-year-olds have started to arrive en masse and, with 83, now make up 18% of the registered birds at the colony. At 470 of those, we are exactly 70 above the number we had this time last year. Food is looking good too, and the chicks are growing nicely. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Hatching has started at @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social's colony site too. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
The Banter See breeding season in numbers so far: 226 males and 210 females (aged 2 - 25) have been registered, 319 clutches have been produced, 257 chicks have hatched, 93 blood samples have been collected and 48 birds have been caught for our geolocator-project.
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Fresh as can be. Hatching has started at the Banter See common tern colony. ❤️
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
In other lovely news: the breeding season of @gullbilledterns-de.bsky.social is well underway too and parents of the first three nests have been identified. Here are L28 and L13, last-year sweethearts, this year breeding at nest 3. More news on the blog: gelochelidon.de/home. :-)
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Bugging is underway, and we are missing @matteobeccardi.bsky.social who spent two seasons supplementing the team to collect data on sex- and age-specific mitochondrial functioning in the terns. His paper on this just came out in @jexpbiol.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1242/jeb....
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
Poorly aimed? Out of focus? Nope... ring reading time! After fluffy chick ringing probably the loveliest job of all. :-)
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
Happy #SeabirdSaturday from the Banter See common tern colony, where 378 birds have now been registered by the antenna system, and 225 nests have been found. It's a synchronous season this year!
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Last year, @genmig.bsky.social turned her office @ifv-whv.bsky.social into a recording studio, and 6 kids from a local highschool interviewed scientists to learn about bird migration, that of the Banter See terns included. The result can now be enjoyed online: ifv-vogelwarte.de/en/news-and-...
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Common Tern Project @commonternproject.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Happy 3rd birthday to the tern exhibition at the Banter See! We celebrate with 362 registered birds and 153 clutches today. :-)
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