Prawn Sandwich

Sandwich Terns were getting into the swing of the breeding season on a recent visit to Brownsea. There was a lot of food being caught and offered as part of their courtship behaviour, so it was interesting to see what they were feeding on: mostly sandeels in a variety of sizes, but also larger fish and, at one point, even a prawn.

Visiting photographers are apparently still moaning to the warden about the chicken wire erected to protect nesting birds from predation and trampling by Sika Deer, but for me it's quite simple: if no wire = no terns = no photos, then bring on the wire. The views from the Macdonald hide are still about as close as you are going to get to a tern colony and the opportunities for flight photography are excellent.

A couple of Med Gulls caused alarm among the colony from time to time, while Shelduck also gave frequent flypasts.