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| The Brothers as seen from Lower West Pubnico. (Old 2005 photo by me from my paraglider) |
This report will mostly cover work being done on North Brother.
Work on these islands is done in cooperation with Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) and the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources and Renewables (NSDNRR). - Ted D'Eon
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| THE BROTHERS, Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia |
The following is a chronological listing of our 2026 work with terns of the Lobster Bay area in general, but in particular, with the Roseate Terns (ROST) of The Brothers. The report is mostly the work carried out by Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau and Dr. Shawn Craik. It also includes tern observations from other professionals working on these islands, as well as observations from local residents. - Ted D'Eon
April 26, 2026 - North Brother
This morning six of us left the shore at the end of Rock Road, Lower West Pubnico and headed out to North Brother on a beautiful morning, perfect for the job at hand.
The crew consisted of Shawn Craik with his wife Amélie, Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau, Geneviève Gauthier and me.
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Dr. Shawn Craik is a biology professor at Université Sainte-Anne, Church Point, Nova Scotia.
Alexis Saulnier is a former student of Professor Shawn Craik, now working on her Masters at Acadia University, Wolfville, NS. Her Masters involves tern foraging by species and the food they bring back to the colony, and much more!
Luc Bilodeau is the technician of this "tern colony" team. He runs the boat, does the photography for leg bands, etc.,and the heavy lifting. He is also Alexis' partner in life.
Geneviève Gauthier is a graduate student at Université Sainte-Anne, studing waterfowl.
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The plywood blind is still in good shape and the 72 Roseate Tern nesting shelters inside survived the winter well!
The island hasn't changed much since last year other than there is now a little less soil at the southern end. The gang worked hard to remove much of the weeds; these were placed along the shore below the high tide line; hopefully they'll wash away.
And then the numbered nesting boxes were strategically placed so all the numbers could all be seen and read from the blind.
Seven rectangular plots were identified and sprayed with a saline solution to see if this would reduce the unwanted vegetation (especially wild radish) growing among the nesting area; the spray would be repeated two more times. Also, seven "control" plots were identified where no weed managenent would be done, for later comparison with the saline sprayed plots.
It was a lot of work, but with a great team, all went well. Thank you, crew!
Great crew and a job well done! Thank you all.
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| And, we're on our way - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Alexis Saulnier and Luc Bilodeau leaving the mainland for North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Our landing on North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| The tidal "hollow" on North Brother (from the north, looking south) - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| My old plywood blind survived another winter - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| The south end of the island (looking southeast) - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| The south end of the island (looking north) - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Alexis posing on the south end of the island - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Amélie, Shawn, and Geneviève cleaning up old vegetation - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Luc and Alexis setting up the Roseate Tern nesting shelters - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| More cleanup and setting up - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Luc getting fine gravel substrate for the nesting shelters - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Making a base for shelter placement - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Spraying salt solution in the designated rectangular plots - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| More spraying and setting up - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Most of the nesting shelters are in place - North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Ted D'Eon |
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| Aerial photo of North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Luc Bilodeau |
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| If you look close enough, you will see the placement of the nesting shelters North Brother - April 26 2026 - photo by Luc Bilodeau |
May 3?, 2026 - First report of terns in the area.
On Friday, May 8, 2026, I had a conversation with a lobster fisherman who had just tied up at the Dennis Point wharf. He told me the first terns he had seen this spring were from the mainland at Pubnico Point "last weekend".
The weather and sea conditions had not been very good for fishing over the past couple of weeks so they had only gone out a few times. This was Friday, May 8, and the previous time they had gone out fishing was on Saturday, May 2. So, from that, I assume that by "last weekend" he must have meant Sunday, May 3.
If and when I get a better date for the first arrival of terns, I'll update this post.
Ted
May 9, 2026 - Email from Alix d'Entremont.
Terns on May 9, 2026
Kathleen MacAulay, Logan Moore and I left Abbott's Harbour at low tide at about 7 am on May 9, and checked North Brother Island for terns. We estimated about 76 Commons and 4 Arctics, but no Roseates. There were 2 Roseates foraging with about 40 Commons at a place called Hoptoad Ledge near Forbes Point. We didn't see any terns around Ball Bar.
We then landed on Bon Portage Island, checked on the alcid colony at Green Island (near Cape Sable Island) and returned to check the Ball Bar area on the way back to Pubnico. The tide was low on our first check in the morning, but by early adternoon, the tide had changed and a strong current had formed at the northern end of Bon Portage and at Ball Bar. A group of about 50 terns were diving at Bon Portage's northern bar including 3 Roseates. From there we looked north and saw an even bigger group at the Ball Bar. An estimated total of 450 terns were foraging or loafing nearby! This is the most terns I've ever seen away from a breeding colony. We counted and estimated from photos that this huge group of terns could have included up to 69 Roseate Terns! At a minimum, there were certainly at least 43 (13 actively foraging + 30 in a single photo of the loafing birds after a flush). We had a similar observation of an early spring large group of terns at Ball Bar on May 12, 2025 (https://ebird.org/checklist/S237001167).
On our way back to Abbott's Harbour, we stopped to look at North Brother again and saw that there were no terns. They must have all been at the Ball Bar!
The attached images (below) are all from Ball Bar on May 9, 2026.
Alix Arthur d'Entremont
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| Roseate and Common Terns at Ball Bar, Shelburne County, Nova Scotia - May 9, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Roseate and Common Terns at Ball Bar, Shelburne County, Nova Scotia - May 9, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Roseate and Common Terns at Ball Bar, Shelburne County, Nova Scotia - May 9, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
Thank you, Alix, Kathleen, and Logan.
May 19, 2026 - Email from Alix d'Entremont.
North Brother Terns on May 18, 2026
Kathleen MacAulay, Richard Donaldson and I stopped for a quick look from the boat at North Brother in the morning yesterday (May 18) and saw about 400 terns on the island.
See (https://ebird.org/checklist/S341847799)
Species observed: 2 Common Eider 1 Ruddy Turnstone 20 Arctic Tern 265 Common Tern 15 Roseate Tern 5 Double-crested Cormorant
Alix Arthur d'Entremont
Thank you, Alix, Kathleen, and Richard.
May 20, 2026 - Email from Alix d'Entremont.
Pubnico Harbour
There have been about 25 terns on Île Ferrée lately. It does look like a pair of Great Black-backed Gulls are nesting there again which isn't great for the terns.
I haven't checked on Île Chespêque.
Thank you, Alix.
May 24, 2026 - Update from North Brother - Email from Alexis Saulnier
Here's a short update from NBI. Luc (Bilodeau) and I went on the island this morning to find approximately 250-275 terns with at least 60 Roseates and 8 Arctics.
I'm glad to say that everything's looking good with the colony: egg laying may have started a bit later than previous years but there are still many Common Tern eggs and a few Roseate eggs, the feeding rate seems good with a typical array of early season prey (small lumpfish, mummichog, hake and herring, some sand lance, and various other fish in small quantities), and no signs of predation.
As usual, we have many returning Roseates that are banded (a full list of bands will be provided later) and we also saw two Common Terns that still have their GPS backpacks (X50 and X57). Unfortunately, the base station hasn't been deployed yet, but we'll let you all know if those tags are still working once we've got everything set up.
We're looking at approximately the 11th of June for the nest count.
We'll keep you posted as the season progresses.
Cheers, Alexis
Thank you, Alexis and Luc
May 31, 2026 - Update from North Brother - Email from Alexis Saulnier
The colony looks healthy and strong, and there are still no signs of predation.
They (the terns) were quite aggressive while we went through the colony and their behaviour is what we expect to see (i.e., not a lot of feeding while partners switch out incubating the egg(s)).
We have 62 Roseate nests, including four active out-of-box nests and a big increase in Arctic Tern nests to at least 15 nests. We also have another returning GPS tagged tern (Roseate Tern band NB4) and we were able to deploy the GPS base station thanks to Jen and Sarah's quick work to get us a functioning one.
Julie (McKnight) will be coming to help us out later this week as we attempt to trap these GPS birds to remove their backpacks.
See a list of identified bands below.
May 16, 2026 Roseate Tern bands . BL0 (red band, right leg) . BZ0 (red band, right leg) . Y85 (red band, left leg) . Z29 (red band, left leg) ----------------------------- May 24, 2026 Roseate Tern bands . A81 (yellow band, left leg) . T42 (yellow band, left leg) . VR2 (yellow band, left leg) . B19 (red band, right leg) . B40 (red band, right leg) . B65 (red band, left leg) . B76 (red band, left leg) . B95 (red band, right leg) . BB1 (red band, right leg) . BJ0 (red band, right leg) . BU0 (red band, right leg) . BX0 (red band, right leg) . L03 (red band, left leg) . L12 (red band, right leg) . L13 (red band, left leg) . L35 (red band, left leg) . L36 (red band, left leg) . L53 (red band, right leg) . L95 (red band, left leg) . LU0 (red band, right leg) . LL0 (red band, right leg) . LR0 (red band, right leg) . Z00 (red band, right leg) . Z07 (red band, right leg) . Z49 (red band, left leg) . Z52 (red band, right leg) . Z58 (red band, right leg) . Z61 (red band, right leg) . Z62 (red band, right leg) . Z64 (red band, right leg) . Z70 (red band, right leg) . Z72 (red band, left leg) . Z79 (red band, left leg) . Z86 (red band, right leg) . Z93 (red band, right leg) . 1V51 (metal field readable, left leg)
Common Tern bands . Orange flag (left leg) . X48 (white band, left leg) . X50 (white band, left leg) . X57 (white band, left leg) ----------------------------- May 31, 2026 Roseate Tern bands . NB4 (yellow band, left leg) . T83 (yellow band, left leg) . B12 (red band, right leg) . RR3 (yellow band, right leg) . B75 (red band, left leg) . Z92 (red band, left leg)
Thank you, Alexis and Luc.
Great to see so many Roseate Tern nests and as well, so many leg bands identified! Great work!
June 3, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
I made my first visit of the year to NBI with Alexis and Luc for some observations and a tour of the island.
The colony was loud and aggressive.
We marked some additional ARTE, COTE and ROST nests in the colony, bringing our total ROST count to 64 nests.
Alexis and I managed to identify some new bands and affiliate couples to specific nests.
New spotted ROST bands : - RX6 (yellow field readable, right leg), with GPS deployed 2025 - NB3 (yellow field readable, right leg), with GPS deployed 2025 - Z26 (red field readable, left leg) - BC1 (red field readable, right leg) - LU1 (red field readable, right leg)
Team: Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 4, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
We got to the island for a day of trapping. Prioritizing birds with slipped metal bands causing injuries to their feet and those still wearing GPS deployed in the previous year.
New shelter traps were used to capture the 5 following ROST :
- NH8 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly B76
- NH9 (yellow field readable, right leg), formerly had a metal federal band (9822-51571)
on its left leg.
Note: This band had slipped and was crushing the bird's foot.
We removed the metal band and added a plastic field readable (NH9) on it's right leg.
To avoid having another injury, no new metal band was placed on it's left leg.
- NJ0 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded
- NB3, GPS removal
- RX6, GPS removal
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| New plexiglass face trap - obtained by GoPro footage, North Brother - June 4, 2026 |
The tern's body conditions after removing the bands and GPS were assessed, and then the birds were released.
The colony seemed strong, and quite a few fish were seen flying overhead during our visit.
New identified ROST band: BE1 (red field readable, right leg)
Team: Kathleen MacAulay, Julie McKnight, Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis, Luc, Julie, and Kathleen.
June 5, 2026 - Visit to Gull Island - from a text received from Alix d'Entremont.
About 90 or more terns there; no Roseates.
Two sheep are also there; the shepherd told him they would soon be removed so they wouldn't trample the tern nests.
Thank you, Alix.
June 7, 2026 - Pubnico Harbour - from Alix d'Entremont's Facebook page.
Kathleen MacAulay and I launched the Zodiac in Pubnico Harbour this afternoon at high tide. Our goal was to check on the tern colonies at Île Ferrée and Île Chespêque.
We estimated 70 on Île Ferrée and 27 on Île Chespêque. Like previous years, Île Ferrée also had a Great Black-backed Gull pair that nested and we saw two young on the island today.
There was still a small group of scoters in Pubnico Harbour that included 9 Surfs and one White-winged.
Thank you, Alix and Kathleen.
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| Common Tern at Île Ferrée, Pubnico Harbour - June 7, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Female Common Eider at Île Chespêque, Pubnico Harbour - June 7, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Kathleen_MacAulay at Île Chespêque, Pubnico Harbour - June 7, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Male Surf Scoter, Pubnico Harbour - June 7, 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
June 9, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
A busy full day of trapping on the island! The goal was to deploy new 10 GPS backpacks on ROST.
Here is a breakdown of our captures: ROST - NJ1 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly L03, federal band removal due to injury - NJ2 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly B95, newly deployed GPS - NJ3 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded, newly deployed GPS - NJ4 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly B75, newly deployed GPS - NJ5 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded, newly deployed GPS - NJ6 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly LR0, newly deployed GPS - NJ7 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly L53, newly deployed GPS - NJ8 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded, newly deployed GPS - NJ9 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded, newly deployed GPS - NK0 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded, newly deployed GPS - NK1 (yellow field readable, left leg), formerly unbanded, newly deployed GPS COTE - X57 (white field readable, left leg), GPS removal
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| Terns! - North Brother - June 9, 2026 - photo by Daphnée Ouellet |
Some new ARTE nests were identified on the south end of the western ridge, including a hybrid COTE and ARTE nest that we've marked for observations.
New identified ROST band: L40 (red field readable, left leg)
Team: Sarah Neima, Kathleen MacAulay, Julie McKnight, Shawn Craik, Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis, Luc, Julie, Sarah, Kathleen and Shawn.
June 10, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
Census day!
Despite some empty scrapes (presumed egg predation) being seen for all three species as we made our way around the island, we were pleasantly surprised by the total number of nests on North Brother Island this year.
COTE : 577 nests ARTE : 15 nests COTE/ARTE : 1 nest ROST : 62 nests - TOTAL : 655 nests (579 in 2025)
In addition to eggs, our first 2 COTE chicks for the year were hatched. 3 Common Eider ducklings were also found hanging out in a ROST box near their nest.
Though the colony was aggressive and loud during our visit, a few terns managed to land on our heads, which was quite a welcome surprise!
With the weather looking uncooperative for the rest of the week, the terns will get a well-deserved break from us until our next visit early next week.
Team: Sarah Neima, Shawn Craik, Julie McKnight, Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Sarah, Shawn, Julie, Alexis, Luc, and Daphnée
June 14, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
A walk around the colony revealed more empty COTE nests on the northern side of the island. Despite this, new ARTE nests were also found to the north of the island.
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| Common Tern chicks - North Brother - June 14, 2026 - photo by Daphnée Ouellet |
With more chicks hatching all over the colony, this trip marked our last chance to trap COTE adults whose GPS backpacks deployed last year were still on their backs. We got quite lucky!
We managed to spot and successfully trap the 2 following COTE: - X50 (white field readable, left leg), GPS removal - X39 (white field readable, left leg), GPS removal
With fog rolling in, Alexis and I couldn’t manage to do our directional feeding observations. Instead, we watched the nest boxes and confirmed the ROST with GPS deployed last week were still within the colony. Indeed, all 10 ROST with GPS were observed returning to their nests.
In our following trips, we will be aiming to trap NB4, a ROST with a GPS from last year as well as NJ6, a ROST with a malfunctioning GPS deployed this year.
Before leaving North Brother, we installed ink pads in 4 footprint tunnels, in hopes of being able to identify any mammal that might visit the colony.
Other species seen during this visit : spotted sandpiper, common loon and double crested cormorants.
Team: Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 14, 2026 - from Alix d'Entremont's Facebook page.
Kathleen and I left Pubnico at 6 am and drove to Liverpool to launch the Zodiac from Veteran's Memorial Park near the bridge. I had originally considered taking the Coastal Vokey and I'm glad we didn't. The bridge over the Mersey River near the boat launch is much too low for the big boat to pass underneath!
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| Kathleen MacAulay at Veterans Memorial Park in Liverpool, NS June 14 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
We motored slowly towards Coffin Island hoping that the fog would clear. It never did.
We landed on Coffin and observed the tern colony as we waited for the visibility to improve when Kathleen yelled out "Jaeger!" Thankfully I had my camera at the ready and was able to snap a number of photos as the jaeger flew over us and disappeared out to sea. After photo review, we were able to identify it as a near-adult Long-tailed Jaeger, the rarest of the three jaeger species. In fact, older Long-taileds are uncommonly seen in Nova Scotia; however, this time of the year is when they are most expected in the region.
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| A near-adult Long-tailed Jaeger - Coffin Island, NS June 14 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Kathleen MacAulay scoping Arctic Terns at Coffin Island, NS June 14 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Arctic Tern at Coffin Island, NS June 14 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
This year, we are doing tern colony surveys for the Canadian Wildlife Service as part of a province-wide tern survey that involved a late May helicopter survey of the entire Atlantic coast of the province. It isn't possible to identify terns to species from the air, so our job is to get a count/estimate of birds present and estimate species ratios. There is some concern that numbers of breeding Arctic Terns in the region have dropped in recent years, so gathering information on where the species is and isn't is important. In the field, I estimated 130 Arctic Tern and 110 Common Terns on Coffin Island. I will likely update these numbers after looking at my photos.
We returned to Liverpool and trailered the boat to the Lunenburg Yacht Club were we met with Eric Mills. The three of us then headed out to nearby Westhaver Island by Zodiac. The tiny island hosted an estimated 200 Common Terns, a small colony of Bank Swallows and a Kingfisher. My last visit to Westhaver Island was 10 years ago in 2016 when Bertin d'Eon and I landed to count tern nests.
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| Eric Mills and Kathleen MacAulay at Westhaver Island, NS June 14 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Common Tern and Bank Swallow nests on Westhaver Island, NS June 14 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
Thank you Alix, Kathleen, and Eric.
June 17, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
Before settling into our blinds for observations, we set up GoPro cameras on ROST nests with chicks, GPS adults, or previously injured individuals.
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| NJ1 now bearing weight normally on its right leg after removal of a metal band causing an injury to its foot - North Brother - June 17, 2026 - GoPro screenshot |
During Alexis and I's first directional observation block of the season, we noted fish coming in from all 4 directions. With the ARTE population on the island relatively low, we were quite lucky to observe a few ARTE returning from the South with herring for their young.
No footprints were seen in the ink tunnels.
Team : Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 17, 2026 - from Alix d'Entremont's Facebook page.
Bertin D'Eon, Richard Donaldson and I left Abbott's Harbour a bit after 6 am this morning. Our task for the day was to check out the tern colonies on the Mud Islands.
We started at Noddy Island where we had about 200 terns on May 23 but there were none there today. Hopefully they are nesting somewhere else. As we were about to move on from Noddy we spotted two adults and one immature Laughing Gull (not this year's young) and then saw my first Wilson's Storm-Petrel of the year.
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| Atlantic Puffin at Noddy Island, NS June 17 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Immature Laughing Gull at Noddy Island, NS June 17 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
Afterwards, we landed on Round Island and then Flat where there were two tern colonies. While on the boat as we were preparing to leave Flat Island we had an American Oystercatcher fly by headed towards Flat Island. This was my 335th species for Yarmouth County. While they breed in nearby Shelburne County, they are extremely uncommon elsewhere.
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| Savannah Sparrow on Round Island, NS June 17 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Richard Donaldson and Bertin D'Eon leaving Round Island in the Zodiac June 17 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Towing the Zodiac from Round Island to Flat Island June 17 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
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| Nelson's Sparrow on Flat Island June 17 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
Thank you Alix, Bertin, and Richard.
June 18, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
Intermittent fog brought a stop to our plans to do directional observations and ROST trapping to remove old GPS tags.
Instead, Alexis and I assigned more individuals to ROST nest boxes and spotted 4 new out-of-box nests bringing our total of active ROST nests to 66. One of these nests is isolated from the other ROST nests, finding itself on the southern end of the island.
As a note, over the last two weeks our total ROST nest count has dropped by five as three out-of-box nests and two shelter nests were predated (the eggs of the two shelter nests were located at the opening of the box).
We walked around the island to take note of the state of the colony. Chicks were found all over, including 25 ROST chicks and dozen ARTE chicks. Two common-like eggs remain in the ARTE/COTE hybrid nest.
Feedings observed included : sandlance, hake, herring, pollock, mummichog and butterfish.
Team : Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 21, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
After walking around the island, we stated that our number of ROST nests climbed to 68, 46 of these nests have chicks for a total of 63 hatched ROST chicks. Though our ROST nest count is at 68, only 63 of these are currently active following the egg predation from early June. Excitingly, some previously predated ARTE nests have become active again.
7 GoPros were set out on nests, as chick feeding rates will begin being collected for the season. We hope to see different rates between nests with and without parents exhibiting kleptoparisitic behavior. These cameras also allow for follow-ups on injured birds. All 3 injured birds have been seen putting weight on their injured legs and tending to their nests normally.
During our 2 hours of observations, terns of all species were seen flying in with fish to quickly feed their chicks before going back out to sea again. Fish seen included herring, hake, butterfish, lumpfish and pollock.
We took our first Project Poop samples from 10 COTE chicks. This project aims to identify remaining prey DNA found in the chick's excrements to better understand their diet.
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| Awaiting a COTE chick's poop sample - North Brother - June 21, 2026 - photo by Daphnée Ouellet |
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| Roseate Tern chick with a fish head - North Brother - June 21, 2026 - photo by Daphnée Ouellet |
Team: Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 22, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
9 GoPros were set out on ROST nests in hopes of getting chick feeding data as well as associating banded individuals to specific nests that are difficult to see from the blind. As of now, we have identified both adults in 43 of our 63 active ROST nests.
During our observation period, in addition to chick feedings, some kleptoparisitic behavior was observed by ROST. Notably, NJ0 with a particular tactic of waiting on the ground for a fish to fly overhead before bolting into the air to steal the prey. Most other ROST fly continuously above the island and dive down onto their targets. NJ0, previously unbanded, was caught and banded earlier this month as we unsuccessfully tried to catch its partner to remove an old GPS. It is quite a lucky coincidence that this bird happens to be a kleptoparasite that we can now properly identify!
We continued with Project Poop sample collection, this time, with 6 ROST chicks that we also banded. Here are the new bands : - NK2 (yellow field readable, left leg) - NK3 (yellow field readable, left leg) - NK4 (yellow field readable, left leg) - NK5 (yellow field readable, left leg) - NK7 (yellow field readable, left leg) - NK8 (yellow field readable, left leg)
Additional birds seen around the island included 2 Great Blue Herons that landed for only a short time. A Tree Swallow, some Gulls, Common Loons and Black Guillemots also flew nearby.
Team : Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 25, 2026 – North Brother – by Daphnée Ouellet
As colder weather and heavy rain poured down in Pubnico the past 2 days, our walk around the colony revealed some expected mortality for all 3 tern species, including 7 young ROST chicks. Despite this, the colony remained aggressive and many nests held newly hatched chicks.
GoPros were set out on nests of kleptoparasites and GPS tagged birds. During our observation period, we noticed a steady variety of fish being fed to the chicks : herring, hake, sandlance, mummichog, butterfish and pollock.
One persistent Common Eider remains on the island, still sitting on her nest regardless of our presence on the island.
Team : Alexis Saulnier, Luc Bilodeau & Daphnée Ouellet
Thank you, Daphnée, Alexis and Luc.
June 23, 2026 - from Alix d'Entremont's Facebook page.
I only just saw my first Yarmouth County American Oystercatcher at Flat Island last week. This group of three that Bertin D'Eon found at Pond Rd in Lower West Pubnico were even more of a surprise!
Here is a photo of the oystercatchers flying by with a misty Whitehead Island in the background.
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| Oystercatchers flying by with a misty Whitehead Island in the background Pond Road, Lower West Pubnico - June 23 2026 - photo by Alix d'Entremont |
Thank you Alix and Bertin.
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| The number of tern nests (Common, Arctic, and Roseate) on The Brothers A yearly comparison usually done between June 8 and June 12 Please note: The Roseate Terns may not have finished nesting at the time of these yearly nest counts. |
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| ROST nest numbers on The Brothers - 1991 to 2025 |
| Field-readable Roseate Tern leg bands - North Brother (Unless listed otherwise) - 2026. (See below) |
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Resighted and new leg bands on Roseate Terns from North Brother in 2026 (Unless listed otherwise) |
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May 24, 2026 |
Yellow A81 left leg - 1332-72681, Sex unknown banded as a chick 6-20-18 at Stratton Island, Maine Seen on North Brother in 2023 |
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May 31, 2026 |
Red B12 right leg - 1172-79313, Female (from head-bill length) Banded on North Brother as an adult on June 21, 2012. Also seen on Gull Island in 2017 and 2018, and on NB in 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2024. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red B19 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Seen on North Brother in 2023 and 2024 and at Sunken Ledge in 2023 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red B40 right leg - 1172-79345, Presumed Male Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 20, 2013 Also seen on North Brother in 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022 2023, 2024 and 2025, and on Gull Island in 2017. and on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red B65 left leg - 0802-04928, Male (from head-bill length) Banded as a chick on North Brother on July 16, 2007 Previously seen on North Brother in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, and on Gull Island in 2017 and 2018, and at Ball Bar in 2024. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red BB1 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Male Seen on North Brother in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 Probably same individual identified as B81 on May 23, 2024? |
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June 3, 2026 |
Red BC1 right leg - 9822-53286, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2019 Seen on North Brother in 2023 and 2024 |
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June 4, 2026 |
Red BE1 right leg - 1392-31413, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother on July 15, 2019. Seen on Cape Sable and at Sunken Ledge in 2022. Seen on North Brother in 2023 and 2024. Seen on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red BJ0 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Seen on North Brother in 2024 and 2025. |
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May 16, 2026 |
Red BL0 right leg - 9822-53291, Sex unknown Seen at Sunken Ledge on July 31, 2022 and July 13, 2023 Seen on North Brother in 2024 and 2025 and on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red BU0 right leg - 9822-53296, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2019, 2022, 2024 and 2025 Seen at Hawk Inlet in 2022 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red BX0 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 16, 2026 |
Red BZ0 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded on North Brother Seen on North Brother in 2024 and 2025. Seen at Cape Sable on July 12, 2023 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red L12 right leg - 9822-51546, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother, Nova Scotia on July 10, 2015. Nested on Gull Island in 2018. Seen on North Brother in 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Seen on Cape Sable in 2023 and 2024 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red L13 right leg - 9822-51547, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother, Nova Scotia on July 10, 2015. Seen on Peases Island in 2018, and on North Brother in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Paired with L87 on North Brother in 2020. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red L35 left leg - 1172-79448, Sex unknown Originally banded C53 as a chick on Country Island in 2012. Must have lost its C53 band. Rebanded on North Brother with PFR L35 in 2017. Observed on the Bear Point Thrums in 1018 and on North Brother in 2019, 2022 and 2023. Nest R42 on North Brother in 2022. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red L36 left leg - 9822-51567, Male (from head-bill length)( Banded on North Brother as an adult on June 22, 2015. Seen on Gull Island in 2017, on Peases Island in 2018, on NB in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2024, on Goodwin's Island (near Woods Harbour) in 2021, on Cape Cod on July 26, 2021. and on Ball Bar in 2025 |
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June 9, 2026 |
Red L40 left leg - 9822-51569, Female (from head-bill length) Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 22, 2015. Seen on Gull Island in 2017, and on North Brother in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. and on Ball Bar in 2024 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red L95 left leg - 9822-52916, Female (laid an egg) Banded on North Brother as an adult on June 15, 2017. Observed on Gull Island in 2018, and on NB in 2019, 2020, 2023, and 2025 and on Cape Sable in July 2021. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red LU0 right leg - 1392-31477, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2019 Seen on North Brother in 2022, 2023. 2024 and 2025. |
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June 3, 2026 |
Red LU1 right leg - 9822-53293, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2019 Seen on North Brother in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Seen on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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June 3, 2026 June 4, 2026 |
Yellow NB3 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Still carrying a GPS backpack from 2025 on June 3, 2026 GPS backpack removed on June 4, 2026 |
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May 31, 2026 |
Yellow NB4 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Still carrying a GPS backpack from 2025 on May 31, 2026 |
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May 24, 2026 as Red B76 June 4, 2026 |
Yellow NH8 left leg - Formerly, Red B76 left leg - 9822-51512, Sex unknown Banded as an adult in 2014 on North Brother. Encountered on North Brother in 2016, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Encountered in 2017 and 2018 on Gull Island and at Sunken Ledge in 2023. Nested with an unbanded bird in 2018. seen on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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June 4, 2026 |
Yellow NH9 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Metal Federal band (9822-51571) had slipped down and was crushing the bird's left foot, so this band was removed on June 4, 2026, and a Yellow plastic NH9 was placed on its right leg. |
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June 4, 2026 June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NJ0 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 4, 2026 |
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May 24, 2026 as Red L03 June 9, 2026 June 17, 2026 |
Yellow NJ1 left leg - Formerly, Red L03 left leg - 9822-51537, Female (from head-bill length) Banded as an adult on North Brother, Nova Scotia, June 25, 2015. Also seen on N. Brother in 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, on Gull Island in 2017, and on the Bear Point Thrums in 2018. Paired with L05 in 2022. Metal Federal band was removed on June 9, 2026 due to injury, the Red L03 plastic band was replaced with a Yellow NJ1 plastic band Observed on June 17, 2026, walking on injured foot (8 days after removal of metal band). |
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May 24, 2026 as Red B95 on right leg June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ2 left leg - Formerly, Red B95 right leg - 9822-51530, Sex unknown Banded on North Brother as a chick July 11, 2014. Observed on Gull Island in 2018, and on North Brother in 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024, and on Cape Sable in 2021. Formerly Red B95 on its right leg. Rebanded (Yellow NJ2) on June 9, 2026 when new GPS backpack was deployed. |
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June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ3 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 9, 2026 (previously unbanded). GPS backpack deployed on this bird on June 9, 2026. |
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May 24, 2026 as Red B75 on left leg June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ4 left leg - Formerly, Red B75 left leg - 9822-51511, Sex unknown Banded as an adult in 2014 on North Brother. Encountered on North Brother in 2015, 2016, 2019, 2022 and 2023, and on Gull Island in 2018. Nested with B90 on Gull Island in 2018. Formerly Red B75 on its left leg. Rebanded (Yellow NJ4) on June 9, 2026 when new GPS backpack was deployed. |
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June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ5 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 9, 2026 (previously unbanded). GPS backpack deployed on this bird on June 9, 2026. |
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May 24, 2026 as Red LR0 on right leg June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ6 left leg - Formerly, Red LR0 right leg - 1392-31456, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2019 Seen on North Brother in 2022, 2023 and 2024 and at Sunken Ledge in 2023. Formerly Red LR0 on its right leg. Rebanded (Yellow NJ6 on left leg) on June 9, 2026 when new GPS backpack was deployed. |
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May 24, 2026 as Red L53 on right leg June 9, 2026 |
Red NJ7 left leg - Formerly, Red L53 right leg - 9822-51577, Sex unknown Banded on North Brother as a chick on July 5, 2016. Seen on North Brother in 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Formerly Red L53 on its right leg. Rebanded (Yellow NJ7 on left leg) on June 9, 2026 when new GPS backpack was deployed. |
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June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ8 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 9, 2026 (previously unbanded). GPS backpack deployed on this bird on June 9, 2026. |
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June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NJ9 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 9, 2026 (previously unbanded). GPS backpack deployed on this bird on June 9, 2026. |
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June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NK0 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 9, 2026 (previously unbanded). GPS backpack deployed on this bird on June 9, 2026. |
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June 9, 2026 |
Yellow NK1 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an adult on North Brother on June 9, 2026 (previously unbanded). GPS backpack deployed on this bird on June 9, 2026. |
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June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NK2 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an chick on North Brother on June 22, 2026 |
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June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NK3 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an chick on North Brother on June 22, 2026 |
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June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NK4 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an chick on North Brother on June 22, 2026 |
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June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NK5 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an chick on North Brother on June 22, 2026 |
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June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NK7 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an chick on North Brother on June 22, 2026 |
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June 22, 2026 |
Yellow NK8 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as an chick on North Brother on June 22, 2026 |
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May 31, 2026 |
Yellow RR3 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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June 3, 2026 June 4, 2026 |
Yellow RX6 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Still carrying a GPS backpack from 2025 on June 3, 2026 GPS backpack removed on June 4, 2026 |
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May 31, 2026 |
Yellow T42 left leg - 1332-72742, Female from copulation behaviour Banded as a chick on Eastern Egg Rock, Maine, in 2016. Seen on North Brother in 2020, 2023 and 2024 and at Sunken Ledge in 2023. |
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May 31, 2026 |
Yellow T83 left leg - 1332-72783, Presumed to be female Appeared to be paired with male BA1 in 2023 Banded as a chick on Eastern Egg Rock, Maine, on June 24, 2016. Seen on North Brother in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Paired with L76 on North Brother in 2021. Seen on Cape Sable on July 25, 2021 and on July 4, 2022. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Yellow VR2 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown GPS on its back in 2025 Seen on North Brother in 2025 No more information. |
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May 16, 2026 |
Red Y85 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Seen on North Brother in 2023, 2024 and 2025 and on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z00 right leg - 1392-31520, Sex unknown banded as a chick on North Brother, July 16, 2019 Seen on North Brother in 2023, 2024 and 2025, at Sunken Ledge in 2022 and at Ball Bar in 2024 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z07 right leg - 1392-31554, Sex unknown banded as a chick on North Brother, July 16, 2019 Seen at Hawk Inlet in July 2022 Seen on Goodwins Island in 2024 Seen on North Brother in 2023 |
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June 3, 2026 |
Red Z26 left leg - 1392-31643, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother on july 16, 2020 Seen on North Brother in 2024 |
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May 16, 2026 |
Red Z29 left leg - 1392-31647, Sex unknown banded as a chick on North Brother, July 16, 2020 Seen on North Brother in 2023 and 2024. Seen on Goodwin's Island in 2024. and on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z49 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information. Seen on North Brother in 2024 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z52 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z58 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z61 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Seen on North Brother in 2024 and 2025 and on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z62 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2021 Seen on Cape Sable on July 25, 2021. Also seen on North Brother in 2023, 2024, and 2025. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z64 right leg - 1392-31674, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother on July 13, 2021 Seen on North Brother in 2024 and 2025. Seen at Sunken Ledge in 2024, and on Northern End Ledge (near Vigneau Island) in 2025 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z70 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information. Seen on North Brother in 2024 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z72 left leg - 1392-31683, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother on June 12, 2022. Seen on Goodwins Island in 2024 |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z79 left leg - 1392-31689, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother in 2022. Seen on North Brother in 2025. |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z86 right leg - 1392-31696, Sex unknown Banded as a chick on North Brother on June 29, 2022 Seen on North Brother in 2025. |
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June 14, 2026 |
Red Z90 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 31, 2026 |
Red Z92 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 24, 2026 |
Red Z93 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 24, 2026 |
Metal 1V51 left leg - 0802-69901 Also seen on N. Brother in 2007, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2019 and 2023 Banded as a chick on North Brother July 3, 2002 This bird is 24 years old! |
| Field-readable Common Tern leg bands - North Brother (unless listed otherwise) - 2026. (See below) |
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Resighted and new leg bands on Common Terns from North Brother in 2026 (Unless listed otherwise) |
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May 24, 2026 |
Orange flag left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown A Common Tern with an orange flag on its left leg was seen on North Brother in May 2024 and in May 2025. |
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June 17, 2026 |
Black R76 right leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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June 14, 2026 June 17, 2026 |
White X39 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Still carrying a GPS backpack from 2025 on June 14, 2026 GPS backpack removed on June 14, 2026. |
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May 24, 2026 |
White X48 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown No more information |
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May 24, 2026 June 14, 2026 |
White X50 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Still carrying a GPS backpack from 2025 on May 24, 2026 GPS backpack removed on June 14, 2026. |
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May 24, 2026 June 9, 2026 |
White X57 left leg - xxxx-xxxxx, Sex unknown Still carrying a GPS backpack from 2025 on May 24, 2026 GPS backpack was removed on June 9, 2026. |