About the Peruvian Tern
The Peruvian tern is a species of tern in the family Laridae. Found in northern Chile, Ecuador, and Peru, its natural habitats are hot deserts, sandy shores, and coastal saline lagoons. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
The Peruvian tern is a very small species with a length of about 24 cm (9.4 in). The upper half of the head and neck are black, and the remaining part of the head is white. The back, wings and tail are grey, the throat, chin and breast are white, and the chest, belly and flanks are pale grey. The under tail-coverts are white. The bill is yellow with a black tip, the irises are brown and the legs are yellowish. The pale grey underparts differentiate it from other small terns. It has a very rapid and characteristic wingbeat.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
When to see it
Peak activity in October · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Damara TernSternula balaenarumAt 23 centimetres or 9.1 inches in length the Damara tern is a small, rather pale tern.
Saunders's TernSternula saundersiSaunders's tern shares many of the features of its close relative, the little tern, including a white body, a black-tipped yellow bill, and a black cap with a white forehead patch.
Fairy TernSternula nereisThe fairy tern is a small tern with a white body and light bluish-grey wings.
Learn the Peruvian Tern for real
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