One Good "Tern" Deserves Another!

The very heavy rain in the early part of this year has meant that the water coming down from the mountains via the Odeaxere and Alvor rivers has been the colour of hot-chocolate and made fishing in the Ria de Alvor very difficult for species which hunt on "sight".

An over-wintering Osprey was reduced to running around in shallow water chasing very small fish because he simply could not see his usual prey of Grey Mullet and Sea Bass.

One of a dozen or so Caspian Terns was very resourceful: I saw it hovering over a group of Cormorants which were feeding communally in a loose circle and diving simultaneously to feed on their "corral" of small fish. As the water "boiled" with escaping fish the tern dived in to take advantage.