About the Elegant Tern
The elegant tern is a tern in the family Laridae. It breeds on the Pacific coast of southern California in the United States and western Mexico, and migrates south to Peru, Ecuador and Chile for the northern winter; in the late summer and fall, some also disperse north to Oregon and more rarely Washington.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
This is a medium-large tern, with a long, slender, slightly downcurved orange bill, pale gray upperparts and white underparts. It is 39–42 cm (15–17 in) long with an 76–81 cm (30–32 in) wingspan, and a weight of 190–325 g (6.7–11.5 oz). Its legs are black. From late summer to winter, the forehead becomes white. The black of the crest that comes down from the crown extends through the eye, creating a small black "smudge" in front of the eye even in winter plumage. On royal terns, the black crest stops at the eye, while lesser crested tern has a less shaggy crest.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Canada, Belgium, Argentina, French Guiana, Uruguay, Germany, Portugal.
When to see it
Peak activity in September · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Greater Crested TernThalasseus bergiiThe greater crested tern is a large tern with a long (5.4–6.5 cm or 2.1–2.6 in) yellow bill, black legs, and a glossy black crest that is noticeably shaggy at its rear.
Lesser Crested TernThalasseus bengalensisThis is a medium-large tern, 35–43 cm long and with a 88–105 cm wingspan; its weight ranges from 185–242 g.
West African Crested TernThalasseus albididorsalisThe West African crested tern is one of the three larger crested terns, along with royal tern and greater crested tern.
Side by side: Elegant Tern vs Royal Tern · Elegant Tern vs Sandwich Tern · Elegant Tern vs Greater Crested Tern
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