One of my favorite sea birds to watch, when I’m out in my boat fishing for stripers or blues, is the little least tern. Why?

Because they and the gulls know where the game fish are.

Indeed, they do the arduous work, flying far and wide, hunting for bunker or bait fish that have been driven to the surface by predators, like bluefish, stripers and albacores.

And as all good sports anglers know, where there’s terns and sea gulls diving in the water for the smaller fish, that’s where you want to be, throwing your fly or lure into the fracas to catch a trophy fish.

Least terns (sterna antillarum) are the smallest terns in North America. Compared to a herring gull or black-backed gull, least terns are tiny. They are nine inches long, have a wingspan of 20 inches, and weigh about an ounce.

Worldwide, there are over 40 distinct species of terns. And some have wonderful names, like royal terns, Caspian, sandwich, roseate, and arctic terns.

The artic tern, in fact, is one of the longest flying birds on the planet, migrating each year from the North Pole to the South Pole and back, with stops in between, but truly, an amazing feat.

As a migratory bird, least terns aren’t too shabby, either. They winter off Brazil, and typically arrive in Connecticut by early May.

Least terns are skilled fliers and remind me of miniature ospreys. That is, they make their living by plunging into the water to catch fish, like ospreys. But the terns catch their prey with a sharp, pointed beak, while the ospreys grab their meals with talons, wickedly sharp ones.

One of my favorite places to watch least terns in action, and fish for stripers, as well, is off the southern tip of Napatree Point, a beautiful, 86-acre long, sandy, spit of land, now a conservation area, managed by the Watch Hill Fire Department.

American oyster catchers, piping plovers, and least terns, to name a few, nest here in protected areas.

As many know, Napatree Point is also filled with history. For example, the 1.5-mile-long barrier beach once accommodated homes, until the horrific hurricane of 1938 wiped them off the beach, tragically killing some 54 people.

Before then, in 1898, the U.S. government bought the end of Napatree Point – about 60 acres — and built Fort Mansfield, a coastal artillery installation, named after Maj. General Joseph Mansfield, a Union officer in the Civil War, who died from wounds received at Antietam.

Remnants of the fort are still visible, though overgrown with invasive plants.

At its peak, in 1902, Fort Mansfield had 18 buildings and 228 garrisoned soldiers, manning four guns: two 8-inch and two 5-inch cannons, according to the website, seewesterly.com.

But the fort had a brief life. In 1907, a mock naval battle revealed a “fatal flaw” in the design: Its four guns could not swivel around and prevent an attack from the north, or from the Watch Hill side, effectively ending its mission.

The fort was eventually sold to developers in 1926 for $365,000.

How do you identify least terns?

According to Roger Tory Peterson, most terns have a whitish coloring with black caps on their forehead, a sharp, pointed beak, and forked tail. Mature least terns, however, have a white forehead, yellow bill, and yellow feet, while immature least terns sport a darker bill.

Finally, these durable sea birds can live up to 15 years. Enjoy.

Bill Hobbs writes a nature column for The Times and lives in Stonington. He can be reached for comments at whobbs246@gmail.com.