Long, drooping orange bill and shaggy black crest around the back of the head are key features. Also note dark primaries in flight.
Medium-sized tern with pointy wings. Long, slender yellow to reddish orange bill, appears to droop at tip. Breeding birds have a black crest that is shaggy at the rear.
A sleek tern with a thin orange bill, shaggy black crest, and a touch of pink to the underside during the breeding season.
While migrating or during the wintering season, Elegant Terns take rest on coastal mudflats, sandy beaches, or rocky shorelines.
Long, orange bill droops slightly at the tip. Nonbreeding birds have a shaggy black band around the back of head.
The bill on immatures is yellower than on adults. Juveniles have a shaggy black band around the back of the head and variable amounts of dark mottling on the back and wings.
Click on an image to compare
A medium-sized, slender tern with a long, thin, slightly drooping bill. The wings are long, slender and pointed. The tail is medium length and forked. In breeding season Elegant Terns have a shaggy crest.
Larger than a Common Tern, smaller than a Royal Tern.
crow-sizedGulls, Terns, and Skimmers(Order: Charadriiformes, Family: Laridae)
The Cornell Lab will send you updates about birds,
birding, and opportunities to help bird conservation.
