A Common Tern - The Common has a black tip on the bill. The Artic does not have this marking and the bill is a little more red. I did not see any Artic Terns.
You'll see the Common Tern on any seacoast depending on the time of year. It breeds in the temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere and winters in the Southern Hemisphere. That's a pretty long haul for a vacation!
I watched this one for a while until I figured out what was going on. What looked like bizarre behavior to me at first, turned out to be part of a mating ritual (Hmmm.) My guess is this is the female - she ended up on the bottom at the end of the ritual. She's "displaying" - head down and tail in the air, she's showing the male she is about ready to breed.
Never far away, the male joined her in ritual "nest building." They go through the motions of building a nest by grabbing pieces of grass and sticks and pushing them under her body.
(I saw one real nest, and I can tell you, this is the best one gets!)!
W.M. Lewis
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