La Tour du Valat

Institut de recherche pour la conservation des zones humides méditerranéennes

Titre :	Response of Common Terns Sterna hirundo to human disturbance at different colony sites
Auteurs :	Udo Siebolts, Auteur
Type de document :	Article
Dans :	Vogelwelt (Die) (119(3-5) 1998)
Article en page(s) :	271-277
Résumé :	In the breeding season of 1997 I studied the alarm flights and the aggressive behavior towards human intruders in three colonies of Common Terns on the island of Minsener Oldeoog in the German Wadden Sea. The alarm flight distance of individual pairs decreased shortly after the hatching peak from approximately 100m to 60m. Through synchronization of egg laying this seasonal pattern also applied for the entire colony. Habituation and operant conditioning have been demonstrated in a colony situated in the vicinity of human inhabitants for the past 50 years. The alarm flights of this colony happened significantly later (habituation) and the number of attacks was significantly higher (conditioning) in comparison with colonies not influenced by humans. For conservation measures it is recommended that trails and sign-posting should be at least 250 m to 350 m from the edge of a Common Tern colony.

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