TERNS

This authoritative and comprehensive volume on these elegant seabirds is the latest addition to the New Naturalist series.  Authors David Cabot and Ian Nisbet have produced a beautifully written account of all aspects of tern biology, starting with an overview of terns’ global distribution, evolution and ecology, before illuminating chapters on breeding biology, feeding ecology and migration.  Each of the five species of tern that breed regularly in Britain and Ireland (Little, Sandwich, Common, Roseate and Arctic) is considered in detail, with their current population statuses and distributions placed in a historical context spanning their role in British folklore, past persecution (including egg collecting and shooting) and protection measures.  There is an interesting series of case studies on conservation, including a critique of the limitations of current initiatives.  British and Irish vagrants, passage migrants and occasional breeders are also included, as are thorough appendices setting out the scientific research and monitoring underpinning our knowledge of these species and preferred conservation measures.  The book is peppered throughout with excellent and informative photographs, figures and tables.  I would highly recommend it to anybody with an interest in terns, but suggest it would be particularly useful to students and researchers.

Book reviewed by Viola Ross-Smith