Little Tern (Sternula albifrons)

A common breeding resident of coastal wet lands and inland tanks mainly of dry zone and visitor to the wet zone. It is the smallest of the terns inhabiting Sri Lanka. Little Tern mainly lives on fish and prawns. It is   probably some aquatic insects are also taken. It usually encounters as solitary birds though sometime widely scattered flocks are fishing in the same area. Little tern breeds in small colonies on  beaches, dry mud-flats and tank edges etc. from May to August. The 2-3 eggs are laid in a shallow scrape on open ground.