IUCN Least Concern (LC)
Greater Crested Tern
Thalasseus bergii
The Crested Tern is a large, coastal tern with yellow bill and black crest on its head. Its upperparts are mostly dark grey and white including a white neck. In flight they are long-winged and front-heavy in flight (sometimes they are confused with gannets due to their large bill and long neck).
Terns are related to gulls, but have straighter, more pointed bills and more slender wings. They also have forked tails and graceful flight patterns, earning them their former name of ‘sea-swallows’.
Average size is 47cm and average weight is 322 grams.
Most common calls are a raspy 'kerrack' or 'ke-eck'. Other calls include a throaty 'korrkorrkorr' given at the nest by anxious or excited birds
Bird call recorded by: Peter Woodall, XC36632 via xeno-canto.org, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.5
The calls also include a 'wep wep' in flight.
Bird call recorded by: Peter Boesman, XC1067025 via xeno-canto.org, licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
The Crested Tern is found along the Australian coastline and offshore islands.
The Crested Tern occurs in coastal parts and islands around Australia. It can be found along sandy beaches, rocks and sparsely vegetated sandy or rocky islands.
Though the Crested Tern is usually a strictly coastal species, there are occasional records in the arid interior of Australia, where birds were possibly blown by passing tropical cyclones!
Distribution map
Usually seen in flocks.
They breed in colonies on small offshore islands where their nests are so densely packed together that adjacent owners can touch each other’s bills. Rests on buoys or on rocks and sandbars, often with other terns and gulls.
There are few stretches of the Australian coastline where the Crested Tern cannot be seen.
The Crested Tern is usually seen in flocks, often with other terns and Silver Gull.
It forages over coastal seas and offshore, where it can plunge dive from several metres high as well as skim the waters surface for fish and other aquatic prey.
The Crested Tern forms monogamous pair bonds. It roosts on sandy beaches , rocks and sometimes on man-made structures.
It nests in colonies on low-lying sparsely vegetated sandy or rocky islands. The nests are packed tightly together.
Clutch size is 2 eggs.
Breeding season is from October to December.
IUCN status reflects the conservation status of this species globally.
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