ROOTH J (1989) Numbers of Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis breeding in the Netherlands in 1961 - 1988. LIMOSA 62 (3): 121-124.

Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis = Sterna sandvicensis A synopsis is given of the numbers of Sandwich Tern breeding in the Netherlands in 1961-88 and compared with the situation in the 1940s and 1950s of this century (fig. 1,2, appendix 1). In the 1960s, the population crashed as a result of contamination of the birds' food by chlorinated hydrocarbons. After this pollution had stopped, the population recovered slowly, but did not yet reach the population level of the 1940s and 1950s, when up to 40 000 pairs bred. At present, approximately 30% of the North Sea breeding population breeds along the Dutch coast, compared to 5-10% in the middle of the 1960s and up to 80% in the 1940s and 1950s.

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