- Lifespan
- 15–20 years in the wild
- Size & Weight
- 35–41 cm, wingspan 95–105 cm; 140–225 g
- Habitat
- Coastal waters, estuaries, and breeding colonies on shingle beaches, islands, and coastal marshes.
- UK Distribution
- Summer breeder (April–September) along southern and eastern coasts of England, with major colonies in Kent, Norfolk, and Essex; winters in West Africa and returns to breed annually.
- Diet
- Primarily small fish including sand eels, sprats, and anchovies, caught by plunge-diving into shallow coastal waters.
- Prey
- Sand eels, sprats, anchovy, small herrings, and other small schooling fish
- Predators
- Great Black-backed Gulls, foxes (at colonies), and occasionally Marsh Harriers; eggs and chicks vulnerable to corvids and rats.
- Mating Season
- April to August
- Breeding
- Clutch size 1–3 eggs (typically 2), incubation period 21–24 days, fledging at 28–32 days; single brood per year.
- Behaviour
- Highly vocal and social, breeding in large noisy colonies. Adults perform elaborate courtship displays and dramatic plunge-dives to catch fish. They are migratory, making long-distance journeys between UK breeding sites and African wintering grounds.