A Good Tern in Seal Beach

The remarkable story of the comeback of the California least terns at the Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge is a tribute to dedicated volunteers who kept the predators away. It’s a heartening commentary on the virtues of organization and commitment.

Last year all the eggs and chicks of the endangered bird were devoured by the killers of the air: crows, hawks and falcons. Bird-watchers said many adult birds also died. The coastal program chief for the federal Fish and Wildlife Service office in Carlsbad joined with officials at the Seal Beach refuge in asking for volunteer help. The result was several dozen bird lovers working rotating shifts of four to six hours guarding an island inside the refuge, which itself is part of the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station.

The island is four acres of marsh grasses surrounded by an electrified fence. That keeps out ground predators but leaves the newly born terns or the eggs vulnerable to attacks from above. Fish and Wildlife Service official Jack Fancher said he asked for help at other nesting sites of the bird, but Seal Beach got the best response. Because the predators are inactive at night, the volunteers from the Friends of the Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge needed to stay on site only from dawn until dusk. Some kept busy during quiet times by reading books or using binoculars to view other birds whirling overhead. But when hawks or other hunting birds came near, the volunteers were able to shoo them away.

The official count at the refuge this year reported that about 200 baby least terns survived. They were the hatchlings of about 300 birds that built 140 nests in the sand. Only three birds died; only three eggs were eaten by predators. The birds, which migrate to California to breed, have since flown back to Mexico.

Orange County has a number of endangered birds and wildlife, many threatened by natural predators as well as by new housing that removes breeding grounds. The county has been instrumental in developing plans to set aside areas where rare plants and species can be preserved in exchange for housing developments elsewhere. Government agencies and volunteer monitors can help.