tkfranzen
Terning Dark
I’m heading over to a little darker side of Common Tern parenting today. My friends and I were elated to find this brand new family of Common Terns in June 2017. See the previous two posts for more images from this day. We watched in awe as the tiny terns scooted about and parents diligently brought food and brooded, our hearts filling to the brim. The mood changed on a dime and, without warning, a parent began attacking its tiny young nestling. We gaped in horror as we watched this confusing display. Throughout two days we witnessed this from multiple tern families and I am still unclear about the behavior. My initial thought was the adults educating their young about keeping within their own small region of the larger communal territory. Or, possibly, the young hatchling had accepted food from another tern, not one of its parents. Whatever the reason, I’m certain it is not out of cruelty, but out of some inscrutable instinct deemed suitable for raising their young to become successful adults. A short time after each attack, the tiny tern would push under its mother’s breast as she tenderly welcomed it back into her warm embrace. If you’d like to read more about my thoughts on perceptions of cruelty in nature, please view the article on my website at www.terifranzenphotography.com/perceptions-of-cruelty/
Terning Dark
I’m heading over to a little darker side of Common Tern parenting today. My friends and I were elated to find this brand new family of Common Terns in June 2017. See the previous two posts for more images from this day. We watched in awe as the tiny terns scooted about and parents diligently brought food and brooded, our hearts filling to the brim. The mood changed on a dime and, without warning, a parent began attacking its tiny young nestling. We gaped in horror as we watched this confusing display. Throughout two days we witnessed this from multiple tern families and I am still unclear about the behavior. My initial thought was the adults educating their young about keeping within their own small region of the larger communal territory. Or, possibly, the young hatchling had accepted food from another tern, not one of its parents. Whatever the reason, I’m certain it is not out of cruelty, but out of some inscrutable instinct deemed suitable for raising their young to become successful adults. A short time after each attack, the tiny tern would push under its mother’s breast as she tenderly welcomed it back into her warm embrace. If you’d like to read more about my thoughts on perceptions of cruelty in nature, please view the article on my website at www.terifranzenphotography.com/perceptions-of-cruelty/