Tern Research Group

Every summer, a group of beautiful visitors arrive and breed on outlying islands in Hong Kong. They leave Hong Kong to head south in September and return in May of the next year. These visitors are composed of three species of terns.

Terns are elegant and easy to observe. Thus they have high aesthetic and educational value, comparable to the Chinese White Dolphin. Going for a boat trip is now a popular activity in summer as ecotourism becomes more common. It could pose a threat to the terns. People set their feet on islands where the terns breed and this action seriously disturbs the birds’ lives. To better protect the precious and beautiful terns, the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society and the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department have cooperated to undergo a tern survey to systematically collect information about the breeding terns. The Group also increased patrol on the breeding sites and promoted conservation message as well as the right ways for tern-watching to the public.