Least Tern
(Sterna antillarum)
Least Tern
Interior least terns breed along the lower
portions of the Missouri River and on
the lower Yellowstone River. Interior least
terns nest on un-vegetated, sand-pebble
beaches and islands of large reservoirs and
rivers. Conservation concerns include:
human use and bird or mammal predation
on adults, juveniles, and eggs; pesticide
and heavy metal pollution; and human
modifi cation of river fl ow (e.g., reduction of
spring fl oods by dams), bank stabilization
and channelization, resulting in reduced
availability of bare island/sandbar nesting
habitat. Conservation strategies include:
controlling predators; decreasing point and
non-point inputs of pesticides and heavy
metals into rivers and fl oodplains; and
decreasing human modifi cations of fl ows on
larger rivers and Fort Peck Reservoir.
