Sandwich Tern Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  A medium-sized, slender tern with long, thin, sharp bill and long, pointed wings. The tail is medium length with a shallow fork. Adults during the breeding season have a shaggy crest that gives a ragged look to the back of the head.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Common Tern, smaller than a Royal Tern.

  crow-sized

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 13.4-17.7 in (34-45 cm)
    • Weight: 6.3-10.6 oz (180-300 g)
    • Wingspan: 33.1-35.4 in (84-90 cm)

  © Brian Sullivan / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  Breeding adults are pale gray above, white below, with a black crest and a black bill with yellow tip. The outer primaries of the wing are dark gray, and the legs are dark. Nonbreeding adults have a white forehead and little or no crest. Juveniles lack the yellow tip to the bill (some have yellowish bill), legs and feet usually dark but sometimes yellowish.

• Behavior

  Forages for small fish by diving from the air into the sea. Often forages in large flocks mixed with other seabird species. Breeds in colonies, where pairs court in the air and on the ground, on islands and beaches, often among other tern species.
• Habitat

  Nests on barrier beaches, sandy islands, and dredge-spoil islands. Forages close to the shore in ocean waters, and often in inlets and rivermouths adjacent the ocean. Typically forages within 5 miles of land.