Joe Vicente, age 13, of Bennington, Vt., for his question:
ARE THERE MANY KINDS OF TERNS?
Tern is a subfamily of sea birds related to gulls. There are about 35 or more kinds of terns found in different parts of the world. Fourteen kinds are native to North America.
Terns are famous for their powers of flight. Most of them live along seacoasts, rivers and lakes, rather than in the open sea. One kind, the sooty tern, often ranges far from land, as do some others.
The arctic tern flies farther in its migration than any other bird known. Some arctic terns travel 22,000 miles in a year, from the Arctic Circle to the Antarctic Circle and then back.
Terns have pointed wings that can carry them through the air swiftly as well as for long distances. Their swift, graceful flight has given them the name "sea swallow."
Terns live mainly on small fish. They seize the fish by darting quickly into the water from the air, with the bill pointing down.
Terns have very long, pointed bills. They also have webbed feet.
Colonies of terns inhabit islands during the nesting season. Thousands and thousands of them come together. Usually the nests are slightly hollowed out places on the ground. Sometimes the birds just lay their eggs on bare rock or sand while other times they may make nests of seaweed.
One kind, the love tern, lays its single egg on a hollow place on a small branch, or on a rock ledge with no nest whatever. One parent then holds the egg in place while it hatches.
One of the largest kinds is the Caspian tern, a very handsome bird that is 21 inches long. It has a shining black crest and pearl gray back and wing feathers, with a white tail and throat. The smallest is the least tern, which measures nine inches in length.
The common tern lays three or four eggs which vary in color from white to brown.
The common tern is a beautiful bird that lives on the Atlantic Coast of North America. Once hunters almost killed off this species in seeking its eggs and plumes. This type of tern is now protected by law and it is again increasing in numbers.
The tern usually seen on inland marshes and lakes is the black tern. Other types found often in North America include the gull billed, royal and arctic terns.
In the same family as the tern is the gull, a long winged bird that is about the size of a pigeon.
Most gulls have broader wings, squarer tails and larger, stockier bodies than terns. Gulls look less graceful in flight than terns, but they can swim better. Ocean gulls often rest by floating on the water.
Gulls, like terns, are migratory birds. They fly to warm regions in the winter and then fly back north to breed in the summer. Utah has selected the sea gull as its official state bird, but none of the states or provinces have selected the tern.