Antarctic Tern
Sterna vittata
Coastal. Found in winter in non-breeding plumage. Grey above, white below. Antarctic Tern is larger than Common Tern with dark red bill. .
Terns
EN
Not Endemic
Description
Common winter visitor. Breeding plumage unmistakable: overall dark grey with long white cheek-stripe and black cap (cf. [Whiskered Tern]). Differs from rare[White-cheeked Tern]in white (not grey) rump and tail and from[Roseate Tern]in darker grey colour, plumper body and thicker, more robust bill. Non-breeding plumage retains much of the grey underparts; bill remains dark red with black at tip and along ridges.Immatureheavily barred buff on mantle. Roosts on rocky shorelines and sandy beaches. Feeds far out at sea.
Quick Facts
Size
34-40 cm - M
Names
A: Grysborssterretjie
Z: insukakude
G: Gabelschwanz-Seeschwalbe
Bird Family
More slender, more agile than gulls and, in most species, with deeply forked tails. The majority feed at sea, plunge-diving for fish. A few, such as the marsh terns, feed mainly on insects caught in dipping flight or plucked from the surface of inland ponds, lakes and rivers. Calls are mostly similar and rather nondescript, typically ‘kee-vit' or ‘krit'.
Distribution
Gallery
Behaviour
Breeding
Habitat
Roosts on rocky shorelines and sandy beaches.
