The attached table (see the July 25th entry) of Least Tern numbers tells most of the story of the Least Tern Natural Preserve at Huntington State Beach for this season. We have peaked at 485 nests and have only a few active nests at this time. I've looked over the colony over the last couple of days, and saw none of the chicks the monitors counted- just a lot of young "teenage" fledglings, i.e.- starting to look like adults, but still want to be fed all the time.

This time of season it is still important to keep our eyes open to colony activities. Lately these include: -- Lots of helicoptors at low level flight. Not sure how to chase them all down. If you can get a photo or video or numbers, we will soon have a phone number where we can report them. There is a 1000' ceiling over the colony. -- Dogs off leash at the south end of the Preserve. -- A juvenile peregrine eating fledglings- two days this week observed. If you see one, please note if you see a band (there were four banded juvies produced out of Newport Beach and 8 non-banded juvies produced out of Long Beach this year). -- Great blue herons, adults and juveniles in the river, Talbert Channel, and near the colony. -- A penguin in the front yard. -- Abuse to some of our signs.

So, be aware of these threats, and watch for: -- Western snowy plovers on the beach front. We've averaged 8-10 daily. -- Banded snowys or fledgling least terns from another colony. -- Gull-billed Terns, Burrowing Owls, American Kestrels, shrikes, and peregrines.

We like to keep up our monitoring efforts until about the middle of August for both of our sensitive species. We expect to see our snowy plover numbers increase to their typical numbers of ~ two dozen through the next few months. During this busy summer season the birds need our help getting out visitor information. We will announce the official end-of-tern-season, but welcome the docent presence at any time of year. Your efforts are appreciated and are a huge part of the success for this colony of terns. Thanks again.

The date for our traditional end-o-season BBQ, appreciation awards and photo show evening will be Wed. August 29, 5:00 PM, at the Lifeguard HQ building at the Magnolia St. entrance. Please bring something for yourselves to BBQ and drink (sorry, no alcohol is allowed at the state beach), your own plates and utensils and something to share. Last names beginning with A through L, please bring a dessert, M through Z, please bring a salad or other side dish. Also, your spouse or a guest is welcome! —David Pryor