Whiskered Tern at Alphonse

Whiskered Tern at Alphonse (Kaleleah Andrews)

Kaeleah Andrew has reported a Whiskered Tern in breeding plumage at Point Dot, Alphonse on 11 December 2023. The nominate race of Whiskered Tern breeds across much of southern Eurasia, Eastern European birds winter mostly in East Africa, with a few in the southern Middle East. Therefore, this must be a potential vagrant to Seychelles. However, it would be surprising to see a Eurasian bird in full breeding plumage in December. Race delalandii breeds in Madagascar, southern Africa and east Africa. This is the darkest race and indeed the plumage of this bird is very dark, perhaps exaggerated to some extent by the exposure. This race has a small white cheek. Peak laying in Madagascar is November. SBRC has accepted nine previous records.