BirdUp · Species
Greater Crested Tern
Thalasseus bergii(Lichtenstein, MHC, 1823)
- Order
- CHARADRIIFORMES
- Family
- Laridae
- Genus
- Thalasseus
- Commonness
- Very common
- Best seen
- Year-round
01 · Identification
How to tell it apart
The greater crested tern, also called crested tern, swift tern, or great crested tern, is a tern in the family Laridae that nests in dense colonies on coastlines and islands in the tropical and subtropical Old World. Its four or five subspecies breed in the area from South Africa around the Indian Ocean to the central Pacific and Australia, all populations dispersing widely from the breeding range after nesting. This large tern is closely related to other species in its genus, but can be distinguished by its darker, battleship-grey upperparts, white forehead even in full breeding plumage, and greenish-tinged yellow bill colour.
Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
02 · Where
Where to find it
- Breeding range
- AU, OR, AF : coasts of south-west Africa, North Indian Ocean and marginal seas, through Indonesian and Australian waters from far south Japan to east Polynesia
03 · When
When to look
Months this species is recorded across its Australian range.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
05 · Behaviour
Habits and haunts
06 · Gallery
Plumage up close
4 photos
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