Australian Tern
Gelochelidon macrotarsa
This is a fairly large and powerful tern, similar in size and general appearance to a Sandwich tern, but the short thick gull-like bill, broad wings, long legs and robust body are distinctive. The summer adult has pale grey upperparts, white underparts, a black cap, strong black bill and black legs. The call is a characteristic ker-wik. It is 33–42 cm (13–17 in) in length and 76–91 cm (30–36 in) in wingspan. Its weight ranges from 150–292 g (5.3–10.3 oz). It differs from the closely related gull-billed tern in being slightly larger, paler grey above, and with an obviously larger, heavier bill.
ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Gull-billed Tern
Gelochelidon nilotica
This is a fairly large and powerful tern, similar in size and general appearance to a Sandwich tern, but the short thick gull-like bill, broad wings, long legs and robust body are distinctive. The summer adult has grey upperparts, white underparts, a black cap, strong black bill and black legs. The call is a characteristic ker-wik. It is 33–42 cm (13–17 in) in length and 76–91 cm (30–36 in) in wingspan. Body mass ranges from 150–292 g (5.3–10.3 oz). In winter, the cap is lost, and there is a dark patch through the eye like a Forster's tern or a Mediterranean gull.
ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Where you might meet both
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Play today's Daily BirdPhotos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Australian Tern and Gull-billed Tern.