Saunders’s Tern       Sternula saundersi

Etymology :

• Sternula : Old English name “stearn” for terns , believed to be derived from Danish and Norwegian terne or Swedish tärna
• Saundersi :Named after British ornithologist Howard Saunders (1835–1907)

 Vernacular Name: Mald: Bondu, Bondu dooni, Mar: Saundercha Suray

Distribution in India: Breeds in Gujarat, In non-breeding season found on West & Southern Coast of India.

Distribution : Size of 20–28 cm; Weight of 40–45 g; wingspan of 50–55 cm. It has straight upper border to white forehead (white does not reach behind eye); slightly paler grey upperparts, contrasting more with blackish outer primaries; grey rump same colour as mantle. The legs and feet are dusky yellow-olive. 3–4 outer primaries are black, with black shaft. The non-breeding adult has pale-streaked forecrown, white lores with black spot before eye, dark lesser coverts, and blackish bill and legs. The juvenile has black chevrons on mantle; paler secondaries and inner primaries that contrast with darker wing-coverts and outer primaries & darker band on secondaries. First-winter plumage is acquired in Oct, and is similar to non-breeding adult.

Habitat: It is found on coasts, estuaries, and tidal lagoons; rarely inland.

Food habits:  It eats fish, crustaceans and molluscs & insects. It feeds mainly by plunge-diving, often preceded by long bouts of hovering.

Breeding habits: They breed in May in Gujarat. They form small, sparse colonies. The Nest-site is above high-tide line, or on mudflats. They prefer small mounds of wind-blown sand around a plant or other object. The nest is a hollow or an animal footprint, bare or lined with shall fragments and small pebbles. They Lay two pale eggs