More than 160 Little Tern chicks have been recorded on a Co Louth beach as part of a conservation project.
The rare and threatened sea bird comes to Ireland from west Africa to nest on the beach in Baltray every year.
The Baltray Little Terns Conservation Project says it has been a "successful season" so far.
It is one of three conservation sites on the east coast, focused on protecting this little bird.
The area has perfect conditions for the Little Tern, where they can camouflage their nests and chicks along the shingle and sand beach.
They are also near two water sources for food, the Irish Sea and the River Boyne estuary.
So far this season, 111 nests and 165 chicks have been recorded.
Ecologist and warden Nina Rogerson said: "It's quite a high success rate.
"We lost a few to weather and predators like the Kestrel.
"But it's been a very good season.
"We haven't had too much disruption."
She said the numbers are looking up from last year.
In 2023, only 80 fledged chicks survived due to tides washing nests away and predators.
Since March, the Louth Nature Trust and its around 40 volunteers have been preparing for the Little Terns' arrival, by erecting layers of protective fencing.
Once the birds come in April, it is a 24-hour job to observe and protect them by patrolling a 1.5km stretch of the beach.
Ms Rogerson and zoologist Brónagh Barnes are working as wardens for the project this season.
Ms Barnes said the birds arrive in dribs and drabs, and they observe them mating on the shore.
"We sit up here with binoculars and scopes, and watch to see where they tend to be landing frequently," she said.
"Then we go out and mark them with small little tent pegs and write the number of the nest," Ms Barnes said.
"We can go back and check up on it when it's due to hatch," she added.
Little Terns are a wild bird and a protected species, so the team try to minimise the time they spend near the nests.
"Once we have found a nest and are happy it's a full clutch, we'll usually leave it alone and we can predict that within 18 - 21 days it will hatch," she said.
"Once it gets close to that time, we will pop in and have a look for the chicks," she added.
The nests are particularly vulnerable to human disturbance because the eggs and chicks blend in with the sand and shingle of Baltray beach, making them very difficult to spot.
They are also threatened by predators like birds of prey and foxes alongside being vulnerable to the tides, which can wash the nests away.
Ms Barnes said: "There are a few birds of prey, the Sparrow Hawk, Kestrel and Peregrine that regularly visit the site.
"They will take young chicks and even adult birds.
"We also have foxes, crows and rooks that are known to take the eggs, so there is a constant threat to these little terns."
Once the chicks hatch, they stay in the nest for a few days where they are fed by their parents and after 18 - 25 days they learn to fly and forage with the rest of the flock.
As well as protecting these birds and enhancing their ability to breed, the project is collecting vital data about the Little Terns and their habits.
"We collect loads of statistics. How many nests? How many eggs? What area of the beach they're on? Is one more popular than the other and why?" Ms Rogerson said.
She said those involved then "compare it to other years and use that to help the conservation project".
"We're here most of the day watching. We record any extra information, like what food source they're bringing in, their behaviours on the nest, how long they stay on it," she said.
Some of the birds have been ringed, allowing the team to track where they have come from.
This year, they have also detected return visitors from last year.
The conservation project is run by the Louth Nature Trust, which is supported by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, the Heritage Council and Louth County Council.
It was originally set up in 2007 by two women and has grown to around 40 volunteers.
"The Little Tern is the most threatened Tern species in this part of the world," Dominic Hartigan, a Director of the Louth Nature Trust, said.
He said there are around 2,000 in the Irish Sea population.
"We have a breeding population of somewhere around 200 birds, raising, we think around 160 chicks," he said.
"Out of the total population that's quite significant," he added.
Highlighting the importance of the conservation work, Mr Hartigan said the success rate was not always so high.
He said: "I've known this beach all my life. When I was younger, there'd be one or two chicks raised here.
"Every other year there'd be none.
"The terns have been coming here for millennia, but increasing use of the beach by others, including us, has threatened their ability to breed successfully."
Volunteers with the Louth Nature Trust work in shifts to engage with people walking on the beach and steer them away from the nests, as well as deterring predators.
Áine Walsh has been patrolling Baltray for 17 years since the project first started.
"The role of the volunteer is to support the wardens," she said.
"We speak to the public, advise them of what's happening and make them aware of the project," she added.
Ms Walsh said volunteers "do a little predator control, managing birds of prey and trying to ward them off".
"We talk to people if they have dogs off their leads and make observations about the birds while we are here," she said.
Ms Walsh does not believe the conservation project would be as successful as it is without volunteers.
"I do it because I love it out here," she said.
"I think it's a fantastic project for conservation and so many people mightn't be aware these are Ireland's rarest sea bird, so we need to protect them," she added.
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