Gull-billed Tern

Gull-billed Tern, adult, Salton Sea, California; late March.

About the photographs

About the map

Play sound from this species

Menu

1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A medium-sized tern with broader wings and a thicker bill than most other terns, the Gull-billed Tern is found along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States and very southern California.

Description

Medium-sized tern. Stocky, with wide wings. Stout black bill. Tail short and notched. Black cap when breeding. Head nearly white during winter, with dark smudge behind eyes. Wings very pale gray with little black in tips. Body white. Legs black.

• Size: 33-38 cm (13-15 in)
• Wingspan: 91 cm (36 in)
• Weight: 150-205 g (5.3-7.24 ounces)

Sex Differences

Sexes look alike.

Sound

Call a slightly upslurred "kay-wek."

Conservation Status

Populations appear erratic, but mostly stable. Listed as "species of special concern" in California.

Other Names

Sterne hansel (French)
Pico de gaviota, Golondrina playera (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• Unlike most terns, the Gull-billed Tern has a broad diet and does not depend on fish. Instead it commonly feeds on insects, small crabs, and other prey snatched from the ground, air, or even bushes. It is also known to eat small chicks of other tern species.

• Although mostly restricted to salt water habitats in North America, the Gull-billed Tern is found in a variety of fresh water habitats across Eurasia.

Sources used to construct this page:

Parnell, J. F., R. M. Erwin, and K. C. Molina. 1995. Gull-billed Tern (Sterna nilotica). In The Birds of North America, No. 140 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia and The American Ornithologists? Union, Washington, D.C.