Bridled Tern vs Sooty Tern

Bridled Tern

Onychoprion anaethetus

Medium119 gMarine

This is a medium-sized tern, at 30–32 cm in length and with a 77–81 cm wingspan similar to the common tern in size, but more heavily built. The wings and deeply forked tail are long, and it has dark grey upperparts and white underparts. The forehead and eyebrows are white, as is a striking collar on the hindneck. It has black legs and bill. Juvenile bridled terns are scaly grey above and pale below. This species is unlikely to be confused with any tern apart from the similarly dark-backed sooty tern and the spectacled tern from the Tropical Pacific.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Dr. Raju Kasambe · CC BY 4.0

Sooty Tern

Onychoprion fuscatus

Medium186 gMarine

It is a medium-large tern, similar in size to the Sandwich tern (Thalasseus sandvicensis) at 36–45 cm (14–17.5 in) long with an 82–94 cm (32.5–37 in) wingspan. The wings and tail are long, and it has black to dark blackish-brown upperparts and white underparts, and a white forehead. The tail is moderately deeply forked (more deeply forked than in Thalasseus terns, but less deeply than most Sterna terns), black, with white outer edges. It has black legs and bill. The average life span is 32 years.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Duncan Wright, USFWS · Public domain

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Bridled Tern and Sooty Tern.