1981; Boulekhssaim et al., 2006; Meziane et al., 2014), it took much longer for their role as breeding sanctuaries to be fully appreciated (Samraoui et al., 2006, 2015; Boucheker et al., 2009; Nedjah et al., 2010; Fouzari et al., 2015). A glaring example of this late recognition is that of Algerian salinas and salt lakes which were overlooked for their ornithological role for various reasons (transient nature, lack of access, remoteness, challenging climate, etc.). It was not until the 21th Century that the first systematic studies were undertaken. They were quickly rewarded by significant results (Samraoui et al., 2010, 2011). While our knowledge of the wintering and breeding status of waterbirds in Algeria has, over the last decade, been markedly refined, there is still room for improvement when gulls and terns are concerned and progress on this front has been hampered by various causes, namely reduced populations, transient breeding sites and lack of access to salt lakes. This delay stands in sharp