A Tale of a Tern

Among the many beautiful seabirds that grace Florida's coasts is the tiny least tern, a feisty creature that scrapes out its nest on open beaches or on the graveled roofs of manmade buildings. Its life is an exciting but harrowing one from birth to maturity, migration and returning to find a mate, nest and raise its own young. These threatened birds migrate 2,000 from Brazil to the coast of Florida to raise their young, arriving in April and leaving in late summer, after their young are strong enough to migrate back to South America. Least terns are endangered in the middle of the United States and threatened along the west coast of California. Both shorebirds and seabirds who nest on the beach continue to experience many threats highlighted in this book: loss of habitat, coastal recreation, dogs, human disturbances, plastic pollution, water pollution, climate change, overfishing and predators-some of them, such as gulls, feral cats and crows, lured in by the food that humans discard.

This book lets you share a journey with Marco, one young tern who must overcome the many obstacles that threaten him, his family, and the very existence of his species. Readers will also learn about other threatened beach-nesting species, such as black skimmers, Wilson's plovers, snowy plovers and loggerhead sea turtles. Although written for school-aged children, this book provides information for adults as well.