The little bird in the red and yellow car

Another new species for the blog today....the Brown Noddy! We are drawing towards the end of the breeding season for this striking tern. Indeed, the chick from the one nest we were able to regularly monitor fledged just over a week ago.

With grey-brown plumage and an ice-white crown and eye ring, they really are a smart looking bird, and one I was very excited to see for the first time. Noddys return to Gough towards the end of September/early October time; around the same time the Gough 62 team took charge of the island. Unlike the tern species we get breeding in the UK, Noddys regularly nest in trees, and indeed the birds on Gough make use of the many Phylica trees on the island.

Looking sharp! (David Kinchin-Smith)

Pairing up at the start of the season (David Kinchin-Smith)

Brown Noddys lay a single egg, anytime between October and early January. The egg is incubated for just over a month by both adults. Despite being only a little bit bigger than Gough’s Antarctic Terns, it takes the chick twice as long to fledge, around two months. Pairs re-use the same nest from year to year and the nest of our monitored pair sits in a Phylica tree outside the entrance of Prion Cave.

Incubating a single egg (David Kinchin-Smith)

Brooding a single chick (David Kinchin-Smith)

Almost ready to go.....(David Kinchin-Smith)

There are estimated to be around 300,000 pairs of Brown Noddys worldwide but just 200 on Gough. This makes them one of our least numerous breeding seabirds and one that will be very much missed over the autumn and winter.

Returning to Gough in September (David Kinchin-Smith)

 David

Reference.

Ryan, P. G. (2007) Field Guide to the Animals and Plants of Tristan da Cunha and Gough Island