Manu Meal

At seven weeks old, this downy nestling enjoys the catch of day provided by an adult after a successful offshore excursion. The manu-o-Kū, or white tern, is an arboreal nesting pelagic seabird that doesn’t actually fabricate a nest; instead, it uses a flat or hollow or fork in the tree to keep the single egg from rolling away. The hatchling uses its strong, clawed, semipalmate feet to cling to the tree branch that will be its home until fledging. Parents alternate brooding duties until a week or two after hatching when the chick can thermoregulate and be left unattended for up to several hours. Then both parents engage in fishing and feeding, often alternating their arrival time back to the nest. Adults fish up to 120 miles and several hours offshore and provision the chick with fresh whole fish or squid rather than devouring then regurgitating a meal. This avian behavior was known to Polynesian voyagers and other seafarers. A landfall that may be out of view over the horizon could be located by following these birds conveying their catch back to their nestling.

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