Forster's Tern, Sterna forsteri

These entertaining and photogenic creatures summer in the Bay Area, and there are nesting colonies at Shoreline in Mountain View and Edwards NWR in Alviso, two of my regular haunts.

An adult in winter plumage, above. Most terns migrate south in the winter, but a few always stay around. And many adult birds molt into their winter plumage before they depart in the Fall.

Above, an adult beginning to molt to winter plumage while still feeding young.

Terns are very good at catching fish and carrying them off, to nestlings or for themselves, but they don't always manage to hold onto what they've caught.

The two downy chicks are well-camouflaged against the dried mud of the islands, a protection against predators in this vulnerable stage. The parents are always ready to attack gulls, night-herons (or photographers) who get too near the nest area.