[Tweeters] Port Orchard Caspian Terns

[Tom Benedict via Tweeters]

Thank you for posting this report John.

This is the kind of story which really begins to paint a picture of the life of an individual bird. It’s not much, but it’s so much more than the fleeting glimpses we typically get as they pass through “our” world. 13 years! Flying hither and thither! How marvelous!

Of the 38, what kind of age range do they have?

Tom Benedict
Seahurst, WA


> On Jul 16, 2024, at 16:14, John Riegsecker via Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu> wrote:

> 

> All,

> 

> The past few weeks the morning tides were high enough they forced the terns arriving for the day to within a hundred yards of the path which made it easy to count them and photograph leg bands.  The highest count was 405 birds.  For the year I have photographed 38 birds with readable codes, and 3 with an older system of banding.  The majority of the birds were banded at East Sand Island, Bellingham, Walla Walla and one at Dungeness Spit.  There was one notable exception.  Here is part of an email I received on one of the birds:

> 

> Thank you so much for reporting this bird to BBL. It is an exciting resight. This 13-year old individual was banded as a chick in the Copper River Delta in Alaska. The bird was one of just 5 individuals that received a field-readable band that year so it is pretty incredible that you found it.

> 

> John Riegsecker

> Gig Harbor