Here is a California Least Tern incubating eggs. The nest is a scrape in the sand.
This is the endangered California Least Tern (S. a. browni) which is said to average slightly smaller and darker than other races (but see below). It has been much reduced in California because of disturbance to its nesting areas and by predation and disturbance by dogs, foxes, coyotes, hawks and even rabbits. It survives in only a few isolated breeding colonies, mostly in coastal Southern California and in San Francisco Bay.
Although listed as an endangered species, there is actually little or no morphological difference between S. a. browni and other subspecies. Most taxonomists question the validity of the three to five currently recognized subspecies.
This photo was taken through a chain-link fence. The birds were not disturbed by my presence.
Panasonic DMC-LZ5 / Nikon FS 3 / 30XWA / hand-held, no adapter.