Fairy Tern and Tropicbird Progress (4).

As usual the first thing I checked on arrival on Thursday 23rd was the status of the three fairy tern juveniles that I have been following over the preceding weeks and reporting on in the earlier editions of this post.
• As with two weeks ago the first juvenile looks fully developed except for the lack of the purple colouration at the base of its bill. I am becoming a little concerned however that this bird is always on its perch. I have yet to see it fly and does seem rather passive. Those of you that have followed the earlier posts on this topic will recall that I started these observations because an unusually high number of fairy tern chicks seemed to be dying around the island in the preceding months suggesting perhaps that there was a food shortage. I do hope that this bird is not following that route.
• The second chick that we have followed since hatchling is progressing well. As reported 2 weeks ago it is alert and already flying. Its plumage has further developed in the interim and the juvenile barring on the wings is becoming less prominent.
• Our third chick “Fred” which we have been following since it was an egg(!) is also showing good growth and development, “he” is very alert and has taken to moving up and down his branch. The plumage however is still very much that of a chick.

Moving on to the Tropicbirds I have very encouraging news:
• The first nest site that had been unoccupied during my checks over the last four weeks again has an adult in place – so let’s hope for an egg this time!
• The adult is still present at the second site and I have still been unable to determine if there is an egg being incubated – the single large brick-red egg typically takes some 6 weeks to hatch and is incubated in turn by both parents.
• Tina our chick appears very well, she is alert appears in good condition and has grown significantly such that the first proper juvenile plumage with black barring is now evident (see photo in sidebar).

Check back regularly for further updates on Fred and Tina’s progress.