ANIMAL:Inca Tern Larosterna inca
Type of Animal:
Tern/Gull
Habitat:
Rocky coasts, sea cliffs, guano islands, sandy beaches, offshore islands near/along rocky coasts, inshore islands, coastal cliffs, rocky cliffs, rocky islands, ocean coasts, coastal islands
Location(s):
Coast of Chile, Peru, & SW Ecuador
Appearance:
Adults dark gray w/ white mustache-like facial plumes & white trailing wing edges, dark red pointed bill/legs, yellow wattle at bill corners, long forked blackish tail, juveniles purplish-brown w/ black bills/feet, lack yellow wattle, & have dark mustache
Food/Diet:
Fish, crustaceans, offal, fishing boat scraps, refuse, carrion, zooplankton, insects, worms, young mice
Status in Wild:
Stable
Conservation:
Breeding in zoos, aquariums, & wildlife parks
Lifestyle:
Huge breeding colonies of 3,000-7,000 birds-feeding flocks also quite large
Additional Info:Called:
Male: Cock
Female: Hen
Young: Chick
Group: Colony
Weight:
6.3 oz
Gestation:
1 month
Life Span:
14-25 years
Height:
1.3 ft
Body Length:
1.3 ft
Tail Length:
2.5 in
Main predators of adults are sea lions, cats, rats, & raptors. Larger seabirds prey on chicks.
Call is catlike mew.
Despite webbing in feet, they’re poor swimmers.
Females lay 1-3 eggs, often breeding twice a year.
Chicks fledge at 1-2 months old.
Often take over nests/burrows of other seabird species, including Humboldt Penguins but also find places of their own. Often nest in close proximity to other seabirds.
Stable but declining due to loss of nesting sites, overfishing, introduced predators, strong storms, guano harvesting, habitat loss, & ocean pollution.
Feed by plunge-diving from height, after brief flight above prey, or surface-dipping, where they swim/sit on water & pick up prey from surface.
Courtship consists of male performing agile flight display & following female while flying, w/ fish in bill for courtship feeding. Once female accepts gift, they choose nest site together, continuing courtship on ground w/ strutting/twirling/wing-drooping.
Adult plumage obtained at 1.5-2 years old around same time as sexual maturity.
Have 2.625 ft wingspan.
Mostly resident w/ only nonbreeding birds migrating. They do disperse more in El Nino years.
Very noisy during breeding periods w/ loud choruses of angry catlike mew sounds.
Molting often occurs twice a year.
Fun Fact(s):
Very bold & often friendly birds.
Get name from being from same region as Inca Empire.
Often associate w/ whales, dolphins, sea lions, & other seabirds when feeding, often stealing food from these animals. Also seen following fishing boats.
Healthiest birds have longest mustaches.
I as well as my guys were actually checking out the great tactics on the blog and then immediately developed an awful feeling I never thanked you for them. Those people were certainly stimulated to read through them and already have surely been having fun with these things. We appreciate you really being indeed considerate and also for having this sort of perfect subject matter millions of individuals are really desperate to be informed on. My honest regret for not expressing appreciation to earlier.
Simply desire to say your article is as surprising.
The clarity to your publish is just spectacular and that i can assume you’re a professional in this subject.
Fine along with your permission let me to snatch your RSS feed to keep updated with approaching post.
Thanks 1,000,000 and please keep up the rewarding work.
You actually make it appear really easy together with your presentation however I find this matter to be really one thing which I feel I would never
understand. It seems too complicated and extremely huge for me.
I am looking forward for your subsequent post, I’ll try
to get the hold of it!
It’s perfect time to make some plans for the future and it’s time to be happy.
I’ve read this put up and if I could I wish to recommend you few fascinating issues or advice.
Maybe you can write next articles relating to this article.
I desire to learn even more things about it!
I as well as my guys were actually checking out the great tactics on the blog and then immediately developed an awful feeling I never thanked you for them. Those people were certainly stimulated to read through them and already have surely been having fun with these things. We appreciate you really being indeed considerate and also for having this sort of perfect subject matter millions of individuals are really desperate to be informed on. My honest regret for not expressing appreciation to earlier.
Awesome post.
Saved as a favorite, I like your site!
Appreciate the recommendation. Will try it out.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on here. Regards
Hello, I enjoy reading all of your post. I wanted to write
a little comment to support you.
It’s difficult to find experienced people in this particular topic, but you sound like you know
what you’re talking about! Thanks
Fastidious response in return of this issue with real arguments and explaining all concerning that.
WOW just what I was looking for. Came here by searching for here
Simply desire to say your article is as surprising.
The clarity to your publish is just spectacular and that i can assume you’re a professional in this subject.
Fine along with your permission let me to snatch your RSS feed to keep updated with approaching post.
Thanks 1,000,000 and please keep up the rewarding work.
That is a great tip especially to those new to the blogosphere.
Short but very precise information… Thanks for sharing this one.
A must read post!
You actually make it appear really easy together with your presentation however I find this matter to be really one thing which I feel I would never
understand. It seems too complicated and extremely huge for me.
I am looking forward for your subsequent post, I’ll try
to get the hold of it!
Hi, every time i used to check webpage posts here in the early hours in the dawn, for the reason that i enjoy to gain knowledge of more and
more.
It’s perfect time to make some plans for the future and it’s time to be happy.
I’ve read this put up and if I could I wish to recommend you few fascinating issues or advice.
Maybe you can write next articles relating to this article.
I desire to learn even more things about it!