Black-fronted tern (Chlidonias albostriatus) colony dynamics in New Zealand braided rivers

Abstract

Black-fronted terns (Chlidonias albostriatus) are globally endangered and are one of six endemic bird species that rely on New Zealand’s braided river ecosystems for breeding. Like other marsh tern species, black-fronted terns are predicted to have low breeding-site fidelity due to the instability of their breeding habitat, small colony sizes and high predation rates. We used breeding colony location data collected from nine South Island rivers for 3–12 years (2004–2015) to investigate the breeding-site fidelity in black-fronted terns. The distribution of breeding colony locations from seven of the nine rivers analysed were not significantly different to a simulated random distribution. The tendency of blackfronted terns to form breeding colonies near past breeding site compared to new sites was only significant for two of the nine rivers analysed. Overall, there was low breeding-site fidelity in black-fronted tern colonies from year to year across the rivers analysed.