Roseate Tern
Sterna dougallii
The Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii) is a uncommon skimmers, noddies, terns, and gull found in 85 countries, weighing about 112 g. The roseate tern is a species of tern in the family Laridae.
About the Roseate Tern
The roseate tern is a species of tern in the family Laridae. The genus name Sterna is derived from Old English "stearn", "tern", and the specific dougallii refers to Scottish physician and collector Dr Peter McDougall (1777–1814). "Roseate" refers to the bird's pink breast in breeding plumage.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
This is a small-medium tern, 33–36 cm (13–14 in) long with a 67–76 cm (26–30 in) wingspan, which can be confused with the common tern, Arctic tern, and the larger, but similarly plumaged, Sandwich tern. The thin sharp bill is black, with a red base which develops through the breeding season, and is more extensive (to fully red) in the tropical and southern hemisphere subspecies. It is shorter-winged and has faster wing beats than common or Arctic tern. Voice: The call of the roseate tern is a very characteristic chuwit, similar to that of the spotted redshank, quite distinct from other terns.
What the Roseate Tern sounds like
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden, Colombia, Morocco, Réunion, Cape Verde, Mayotte, Somalia, St. Pierre & Miquelon, Macao SAR China.
When to see it
Best months: May, June, July, August, September, with peak activity in July. It is a summer visitor species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Roseate Tern?
- This is a small-medium tern, 33–36 cm (13–14 in) long with a 67–76 cm (26–30 in) wingspan, which can be confused with the common tern, Arctic tern, and the larger, but similarly plumaged, Sandwich tern. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Roseate Tern?
- The Roseate Tern is a medium sized bird weighing about 112 g.
- Where can you see a Roseate Tern?
- The Roseate Tern occurs in 85 countries, including the United States, Taiwan, Portugal, the United Kingdom and Australia.
- What does a Roseate Tern sound like?
- You can listen to 3 field recordings of the Roseate Tern on this page, contributed to xeno-canto under open licences.
- What birds look similar to a Roseate Tern?
- The Roseate Tern is most easily confused with the White-fronted Tern, the South American Tern and the River Tern.
- Is the Roseate Tern endangered?
- The Roseate Tern is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Roseate Tern for real
BeakBrain drills you on photos and calls until you can greet this bird by name in the field. Free to play, on any device.
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