Bird Guide Gulls and Terns Caspian Tern
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Caspian Tern

Caspian Tern
At a Glance Range & Identification Conservation Back to Top

At a Glance

All bird guide text and rangemaps adapted from Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman© 1996, used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Category
Gull-like Birds, Gulls and Terns
IUCN Status
Least Concern
Habitat
Coasts and Shorelines, Lakes, Ponds, and Rivers, Saltwater Wetlands
Region
Alaska and The North, California, Eastern Canada, Florida, Great Lakes, Mid Atlantic, New England, Northwest, Plains, Rocky Mountains, Southeast, Southwest, Texas, Western Canada
Behavior
Direct Flight, Soaring

Range & Identification

Migration & Range Maps

Description

Size
About the size of a Crow, About the size of a Mallard or Herring Gull
Color
Black, Gray, Orange, Red, White
Wing Shape
Broad, Long, Pointed, Tapered
Tail Shape
Notched, Short, Square-tipped

Songs and Calls

Call Pattern
Flat, Simple
Call Type
Raucous

Conservation

Change in Abundance Over Time
Drawing on more than a century of community science from the Christmas Bird Count (CBC), this chart shows how this species’ relative abundance has shifted in recent decades. Explore more and get involved in the CBC.

Climate Map

Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect the range of the Caspian Tern. Learn even more in Audubon’s Survival By Degrees project.

Climate Threats Facing the Caspian Tern

Choose a temperature scenario below to see which threats will affect this species as warming increases. The same climate change-driven threats that put birds at risk will affect other wildlife and people, too.