BirdUp · Species
Little Tern
Sternula albifrons(Pallas, 1764)
Updated
At a glance
The Little Tern is a medium-sized bird, about 20–28 cm long, listed as Least Concern and native to Australia. It can be seen year-round.
- Size
- 20–28 cm
- Conservation status
- Least Concern
- Origin
- Native
- Best seen
- Year-round
- Commonness
- Very common
01 · Identification
How to tell it apart
What does a Little Tern look like?
The Little Tern is a medium-sized bird, about 20–28 cm long and weighing 35–108 g.
The little tern is a seabird of the family Laridae. It was first described by the German naturalist Peter Simon Pallas in 1764 and given the binomial name Sterna albifrons. It was moved to the genus Sternula when the genus Sterna was restricted to the larger typical terns. The genus name Sternula is a diminutive of Sterna, 'tern', while the specific name albifrons is from Latin albus, 'white', and frons, 'forehead'.
Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
03 · When
When to look
When can you see a Little Tern?
The Little Tern is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
05 · Behaviour
Habits and haunts
What does a Little Tern eat?
The Little Tern feeds on fish/invertebrates and fish/invertebrates, usually foraging in flocks.
06 · Gallery
Plumage up close
4 photos
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