The Brothers are two tiny islands about 1 km west of Lower West Pubnico, Nova Scotia, Canada.
They are owned by the province and were designated a wildlife management area in April 2007.
Access to them during nesting season (April 1 to Aug. 31) is by permit only.

My work on these islands is done in cooperation with Canadian Wildlife Service and the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources.

THE BROTHERS, Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia

SUMMARY OF OBSERVATIONS AND ACTIVITIES:

The following is a synopsis of the tern status in southwest Nova Scotia for the 2007 nesting season. My "tern" work and observations deal primarily with the tern colony on The Brothers. These two tiny islands are located about 1 km offshore from Lower West Pubnico in Yarmouth County.

Total tern nests on The Brothers was 365 (only on North Brother in 2007). This was down from 616 in 2006; down from max of 880 in 2001.

There were 68 Roseate Tern (ROST) nests on The Brothers in 2007 (32 containing a single egg and 36 nests containing 2 eggs). This was up by one from 2006 and the same number as in 2007. The maximum number of ROST nests on The Brothers was 90 in 2002.

The maximum number of ROST chicks documented was 62. A few of these were found dead, however, all in all, I believe ROST chick mortality was very low as it was in 2006.

34 Roseate Tern chicks were banded on July 16/07 on N. Brother. This was the second highest number of ROST chicks to have ever been banded on The Brothers in any particular season. 44 ROST chicks were banded in 2002.

Five field-readable Roseate Tern leg bands were read in 2007. (See table below)

Very little predation in 2007. The only predation was avian; likely a Merlin as one was observed eating a tern on one of my visits. The predator got about 6 terns over a few weeks, None of these (from feathers and body parts left on the island) were Roseates.

The Common and Arctic Terns also did well. The weather during the critical period was favourable this summer and food (principally Herring) was plentiful, but noticeably absent were the usual sandlance brought in by the Roseate Terns.

Five Great Black-backed Gull nests were removed from The Brothers in 2007 - 3 from S. Brother and 2 from N. Brother.

On June 30/07 we counted about 20 Common Tern nests with about 12 chicks on Île-Ferrée, and about 12 Common Tern nests and 3 chicks on Île-Chespêque. Both of these islands are in Pubnico Harbour. I do not believe any survived to fledge - Avian predation (Great Horned owl and gull suspected). 2007 was the first time in decades that terns have nested on Île-Ferrée. Every year, some Common Terns nest on Île-Chespêque.

The Puffins on Noddy Island, Round Island and Green Island (Green Rock) appeared to be doing well though my visits were few.

All in all, the tern colony did very well in 2007 eventhough the number of Common and Arctic Terns was down.

Of great concern is the fact that The Brothers are fast being eroded away by the tide. The islands are disappearing before our eyes! On August 6/07, I placed some wooden markers a metre from the southern and western edges of N. Brother. I will see in April/08 how much of the island has disappeared.

OBSERVATIONS:

North Brother  (2005 photo)

April 20, 2007 - My assistant Israel d'Entrenont and his son, Wendell were on N.Brother Friday, Apr 20 to do the usual cleanup and maintenance of ROST nesting structures before the terns arrive in 10 days or so. They also placed another 18 16"x16" nesting boxes which I had fabricated before my heart surgery. The island is ready!

16in. x 16in. Roseate Tern nest boxes

May 3, 2007 - Lobster fisherman, Robert Nickerson reported the first terns seen at The Brothers - "about 30 or 40", he said.

May 17, 2007 - 5pm. Under my direction, Israel d'Entrenont and his son, Wendell were on N.Brother to look for and remove gull nests. No nests of any kind were found. Only "5 or 6" terns were at N. Brother at this time of day. Local lobster fishermen report large numbers of terns early each morning above N. Brother.

Israel and Wendell brought me back the severed wing of a Common Tern. The remainder of the dead tern was not found. This was likely the result of an owl kill. There is not too much we can do about that except hope this predator does not take too many terns.

Now the island should be okay for another two weeks or so when I should be able to check it out personally (with a little help from my friends).

June 1, 2007 - I was still not well enough to take my boat out. The Brothers needed to be checked out again for gull nests. Gilbert D'Eon volunteered to take Israel and Wendell to The Brothers to do so.

Israel reported having to destroy one Great Black-backed gull's nest from the North Brother and three from the South Brother.

He also said the terns had begun nesting but there were only a few nests with eggs.

June 10, 2007 - Nest counting day - This was the first outing in my boat for the 2007 season. My assistants today were Israel and Rémi d'Entremont and my son, Nigel. They took care of the heavy work. I just drove the boat and coordinated the count. I am still not feeling as well as I think I should, but I needed the outing.

Israel and myself checking out nest shelters for Roseate Tern eggs - Nigel D'Eon photo

Israel placing numbered stick, identifying Roseate Tern nest - Nigel D'Eon photo

On N.Brother - Total nest number was down to 365 from 616 in June 2006. This included 47 Roseate Tern nests, down from 60 last year at this time. I expect a few more Roseate Terns to nest. We did not land on S. Brother but do not believe any terns nesting there.

Note: little actual tern success in 2003 and 2004 - Mink predation

We found one dead Common Tern and one dead female Common Eider. There were 5 or 6 Common Eider nests on N. Brother with unhatched eggs; also a few depredated Common Eider eggs. One Common Tern egg was also depredated and one more Great Black-backed Gull nest was destroyed. I had been told a few days earlier that from the mainland, the terns were seen dive-bombing what was thought to be a gull, so it was not a surprise to find another gull's nest on the island.

5 Gull nests were removed from The Brothers in 2007

June 16, 2007 - North Brother. An update on the number of Roseate Tern nests.

13 new ROST nests located for a total now of 60.

Of the 60 nests, 29 contained one egg and 31 contained two. Six of the single-egg nests from June 10 now contained two eggs each.

No signs of any new predation. My assistants today - Israel and Rémi d'Entremont.

June 21, 2007 - North Brother. Another update on the number of Roseate Tern nests.

Two more new ROST nests located for a total now of 62.

No tern hatchlings yet. Only one depredated tern egg found. Likely the work of a Gull or Crow. The egg was believed to be that of a Common Tern.

Checking out nest shelters for Roseate Tern nests - Ted D'Eon photo

Margie Rogers walking through rather thick and unproductive vegetation - Ted D'Eon photo

Of note: The island is unproductive where the vegetation is thick. Perhaps before next nesting season I should apply for a permit to place a couple more gravel-covered tarps over this grassy area. Two tarps placed a few years ago in a similar fashion have worked wonderfully well even though it took until the third nesting season for the terns to fully accept my nesting structures on them.

My crew and assistants - Israel and Rémi d'Entremont and Margie Rogers.

June 25, 2007 - North Brother. Three more Roseate Tern nests were located, bringing the total number so far to 65.

28 tern chicks (or eggs in the process of hatching) were found including one newly hatched Roseate Tern. This is the good news.

The bad: Two adult Common Terns had to be rescued from a washed up lobster trap. They were freed by Israel and then he and Rémi cut the netting from the trap.

Israel d'Entremont removing trapped Common Tern from Lobster trap.

Israel and Rémi cutting the netting from the trap

Worse than this, an adult Common Tern was killed by our "mink fence". Somehow it got a wing tangled in one of the mesh holes of the wire fence and was unable to free itself. I am very disappointed about this.

On a lighter note, a Common Tern laid its two eggs in a Common Eider nest also containing two eggs. The eggs were not checked for warmth. Not sure who's incubating who! See photo below.

Common Tern eggs laid in Common Eider nest

Before heading back to Abbott's Harbour, we motored a few km NW of The Brothers to a small island known as The Thrum. There used to be a small mostly Common Tern colony there with a few Arctics. There were no terns.

My crew and assistants - Israel and Rémi d'Entremont and Nigel D'Eon.

June 30, 2007 - North Brother. We located two more Roseate Tern nests. The total number now, 67.

We also located 44 ROST chicks! All in fine form with no mortality. Five of the ROST nests contained two chicks.

After N. Brother, we motored into Pubnico Harbour to check out two small islands for tern nests. I had been told terns were nesting there. On Île-Ferrée we found about 20 Common Tern nests with about 12 chicks. Two adult terns had been depredated by an avian predator, likely a Great Horned Owl from the two owl breast feathers found nearby.

Breast feather of a Great Horned Owl? - Ted D'Eon photo

On Île-Chespêque we estimated about 12 Common Tern nests and found about 3 chicks. We also saw a Spotted Sandpiper with four very mobile chicks.

Our high tide landing on Île-Chespêque - Ted D'Eon photo

David Surette reported stopping on Île-Chespêque the day before where he and Edouard D'Eon estimated 25 tern nests and about 12 chicks. They also found a Common Eider nest containing 4 eggs.

My crew and assistants - Israel and Rémi d'Entremont, Margie Rogers and Andrew D'Eon.

July 04, 2007 - North Brother. One more Roseate Tern nests was located. The total number now, 68.

Roseate Tern Nest Numbers on The Brothers (as of July 04, 2007)

Also located were 18 ROST chicks which had hatched since our last visit there on June 30. This makes a total of 62 ROST chicks accounted for and still some eggs to hatch. No signs of predation were seen and there was no mortality observed with the Roseate Terns (chicks or adults). Two or three Common or Arctic Tern chicks were found dead.

All in all, the colony looked great!

Probable hybrid ROST chick (note yellowish-brown colour) - Ted D'Eon photo

Rémi d'Entremont, myself, and Israel d'Entremont - Alain Hogue photo

My crew and assistants - Israel and Rémi d'Entremont, Alain Hogue and Marie Boisclair.

July 05, 2007 - Heavy rain and wind all day and all night with some thunder and lightning. I am afraid this will negatively impact the tern colony.

July 07, 2007 - North Brother. I brought the portable blind and spotting scope with me to do some observation and to see if I could read any leg bands. I was not successful with the scope because of too much shake. I was surprised when I viewed the digital images I shot. See below.

Banded Roseate Tern (July 7, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

Note "34/C1" field-readable leg band (July 7, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

A Common Tern with a different looking band was also seen. See photos below. It looks like an identification number ending with the numerals "55092". I have been notified by Ian Nisbet and by Jeffrey Spendelow that this band is from Brazil and that there should be a letter prefix (e.g., J-55092). I sent an email in Oct/07 to CEMAVE (the bird banding organization in Brazil) with the information and photo but I have not yet heard from them (Jan. 2008).

Banded Common Tern (July 7, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

Banded Common Tern (July 7, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

In previous years, the Roseates would bring in a lot of Sandlance along with Herring, etc., to feed their chicks. Today I saw no Sandlance at all. All they were bringing in looked like Herring. See below.

Roseate Tern carrying Herring (July 7, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

We did a quick look around the island to look for evidence of predators and chick mortality. There was none.

Note the "a" and the "b" ROST chicks (July 7, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

My crew and assistants - Israel and Rémi d'Entremont.

July 10, 2007 - North Brother. I visted the island with members of the Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation (BCAF). The BCAF does tern restoration work in the Mahone Bay area of Nova Scotia.

We did find some tern chick mortality, probably from the heavy rains of July 5/07. At least 4 ROST chicks were found dead. There was a similar mortality in the chicks of the other tern species.

We also found a few new ROST chicks from eggs which had hatched since July 4/07.

Common (l) and Roseate (r) Tern chicks (July 10, 2007) - Ted D'Eon photo Note the spiky appearance in the down and the dark legs of the ROST.

My assistants: Maggie, James, Wendy and Brennan - Ted D'Eon photo

My crew and assistants - Maggie, James, Wendy and Brennan from the Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation (BCAF), Mahone Bay, NS.

July 12, 2007 - Lower West Pubnico - Common Terns feeding on Herring from a small tidal pool next to Jimmy d'Entremont's boatshop. See video below.

The Common Terns fed from this pool from high tide to the next high tide on July 12, 2007, catching 2 to 3 Herring per second. When I shot the above video at 2pm, they had been feeding like this for 8 hours. There had to be many thousands of Herring in the pool. Very often the terns would catch more than one fish per dive. It was an awesome sight!

Common Tern - Two fish in bill + one on top of the bill! - Ted D'Eon photo

Common Terns feeding on Herring from tidal pool - Ted D'Eon photo

July 14, 2007 - Motored to Flat Island (Mud I. group). No tern colony there in 2007. In recent years there has always been a small Arctic Tern colony of 20 to 40 pairs on this island. One bird of note we saw on the island was a Black-crowned Night Heron. There were also a few Least Sandpipers and Greater Yellowlegs.

At Noddy Island we estimated about 50 Puffins. Lots of Black Guillemots were seen around these islands. We also saw some Gannets, a few Shearwaters, a Petrel and a couple of Harbour Porpoises on the trip to the islands.

My crew and assistants - Rémi d'Entremont, Margie Rogers, Nigel D'Eon and Lester D'Eon.

July 16, 2007 - N. Brother. Roseate Tern chick banding day. A record number of 34 ROST chicks were banded on N. Brother today. The previous max was 27 in 2006. All went well.

Julie McKnight, Andrew Boyne and myself - Nigel D'Eon photo

Brad Toms entering banding data - Nigel D'Eon photo

There were at least 3 incidents of avian predation on fledged or almost fledged tern chicks.

The banding was done by Andrew Boyne, Julie McKnight and Brad Toms of Canadian Wildlife Service, Dartmouth, NS. They were assisted by Nigel and myself.

July 18, 2007 - N. Brother. Looking to read leg bands. We now have two; one today, reading "5V/77", and one reading "34/C1" observed on July 7/07, plus two more ROST with partially read field-readable bands and a few more with other types of leg bands. I also saw an unbanded ROST chick.

When we were back in the boat and getting ready to head back for home we noticed the terns diving on what was thought to be a predator, thinking it might be a gull. We motored to the north side of the island where the results of several avian kills had been observed a couple of days earlier. A Merlin was on the upper beach eating what we believe was a tern. Last year on August 1/06, I had observed a Merlin at the same location doing the same thing. This one was still eating as we motored away.

Avian (Merlin?) kill of tern chick	Merlin eating a tern? - Ted D'Eon photos

My crew and assistants - Israel d'Entremont and Nigel D'Eon.

July 24, 2007 - N. Brother. Looking to read more leg bands. I now have been able to read five in total, plus a few partials.

We now have leg bands "5V/77", and "34/C1" mentionned above, plus "07/0E", "1V/51" and "1L/44". The Roseate Tern wearing this last band, "1L/44", has been seen on The Brothers several times before; the first time in 2002, then again in 2006. It had been banded as a chick on June 30,1999 at Petit Manan NWR, Maine.

Note the bill of Roseate Tern on June 6 (2005) - Ted D'Eon photo

The bill of Roseate Tern on July 24 (2007) - Ted D'Eon photo

Note on the bill colour of the Roseate Tern during their stay in Nova Scotia.

ALL Roseates arrive in May of each year with ALL BLACK BILLS.

The bills remain all black during May and at least until June 6 (from checking my photos). The transition begins in June so that by late June, they all adult Roseate Terns have some orange at the base of the bill and this orange keeps extending slowly towards the tip until the time they fly out in August when perhaps more or less, half of the bill has some orange.

My crew and assistants - Rémi and Israel d'Entremont.

August 6, 2007 - N. Brother. A quick look-around. Tern numbers down but chicks were still being fed. Lots of adults with fish in their bills. We only found two chicks at the ROST nesting structures. One was a lethargic Common Tern; the other, a fiesty unbanded Roseate ready for flight.

On the eastern beach at the high water mark we found a banded Roseate chick (#802-04942). At first glance and by the speed it ran over the beach, it appeared fine. However, it felt thin and appeared smaller than it should have been for its age. We did not do any measurements. It had to be a month or more old and should have been able to fly. It had been banded on July 16/07.

On another note, a couple of Herring-like fish left uneaten by the terns were awefully large (see photos below). They may both have been Herring, but the shape of the body and the large eye of the smaller of the two fish (119mm/4.7in. in length), makes me think it might be a Gaspereau (Alewife), Alosa pseudoharengus. The larger fish (134mm/5.3in. in length) seems more likely a Herring, Alosa aestivalis.

Gaspereau (Alewife) or Herring - 119mm(4.7in.) long - Ted D'Eon photo

Herring? - 134mm(5.3in.) long - Ted D'Eon photo

My crew and assistants - Bernard Surette, Henri d'Entremont, Alban d'Entremont, Ingrid D'Eon and Jesse Deveau.

August 31, 2007 -

Marine Chart of Lobster Bay, Nova Scotia

Click on the chart to enlarge.

Ted C. D'Eon