Image: RSPB

Conservation efforts in the Humber area have led to record-breaking numbers of one of the UK’s rarest seabirds, the Little Tern.

The Little Tern Project has seen numbers soar from 59 pairs in 2024 to over 105 breeding pairs in 2025.

More than 110 Little Terns successfully fledged this summer, a great sign of recovery for a species that was previously in decline.

The project, based at Beacon Lagoons, is led by Spurn Bird Observatory Trust with RSPB, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Natural England, Humber Nature Partnership, and the South Holderness Countryside Society.

This is the highest number of young reared at Beacon Lagoons so far.

Little Terns are the UK’s smallest type of Tern, with a short tail and distinctive yellow bill with a black tip.

Beacon Lagoons, found between Easington and Kilnsea, is the only remaining Little Tern colony in Yorkshire.

It is situated on the East Atlantic Flyway, a migration route used by 90 million birds each year.