Medium-sized tern with pointed wings and a long, forked tail. Breeding adults have a black cap and a black-tipped orange bill. Note white underparts and pale primaries.
Short-legged tern with a thin black bill. Spends the winter in marshes, coastal beaches, lakes, and rivers.
Nonbreeding adults have a black eyepatch, an unmarked nape, and a slender black bill.
Immature birds are pale gray above and do not have shoulder markings. They have a black eyepatch, pale gray primaries, and a black bill.
Juveniles are mottled rusty brown, white, and gray with a black eye patch.
Nonbreeding adults have a black mask and entirely white underparts. The wings are silvery from below with black tips on the primaries.
Short-legged tern with a long, forked tail that extends beyond the wings when resting. Breeding adults have a full black cap and a slender, black-tipped orange bill.
In flight, note gray tail and pale gray primaries with black tips on nonbreeding adults.
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A slender, long-tailed, long-winged seabird with a long, pointed bill and short legs. When perched, the long tail streamers extend past the end of the wings.
Larger than a Black Tern, smaller than a Bonaparte’s Gull.
between robin and crowGulls, Terns, and Skimmers(Order: Charadriiformes, Family: Laridae)
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