Chinese Crested Tern

A wintering Chinese Crested Tern Sterna bernsteini has been seen and photographed in Pulau Lusaolate, north Seram, Indonesia – the first record of the species outside the breeding season for over 70 years. First discovered in 1861, Chinese Crested Tern was largely presumed extinct until 2000, when four adults and four chicks were found amongst a colony of other tern species off the Fujian coast in China. In 2004, it was discovered breeding on the Jiushan Islands. With an estimated population of not more than 50 birds, this Critically Endangered species is China’s most threatened bird and much rarer than the Giant Panda.