Named after Sandwich in Kent, the Sandwich tern is a very white tern, with a black cap on its head, a long black bill with a yellow tip and short black legs. In flight it shows grey wedges on its wings tips and it has a short forked tail. It has a harsh, grating cry which can be heard from March onwards when the birds arrive on our coasts to breed. From July onwards they return to south and southwest Africa. Individual birds can live as long as 40 years and fly thousands of miles annually.In the UK, many of the important colonies survive because they are on nature reserves. They feed on fish such as sand-eels, sprats and whiting and nest in shallow scrapes in the shingle.