Illustration © David Allen Sibley.
Learn more about these drawings.
Text © Kenn Kaufman, adapted from
Lives of North American Birds
Breeding adults. Photo: Melissa James/Audubon Photography Awards
Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximus
| Conservation status | Populations declined seriously in late 1800s - early 1900s when eggs were harvested from many colonies for food; made substantial comeback during 20th century. Still vulnerable to loss of nesting sites. Has declined in California since 1950, coinciding with decline in population of Pacific sardine there. |
|---|---|
| Family | Gulls and Terns |
| Habitat | Coasts, sandy beaches, salt bays. Favors warm coastal waters, especially those that are shallow and somewhat protected, as in bays, lagoons, estuaries. Also found well offshore at times, and travels freely between islands in the Caribbean. Usually nests on low-lying sandy islands. |
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Feeding Behavior
Forages mostly by hovering over water and plunging to catch prey just below surface. Sometimes flies low, skimming water with bill; occasionally catches flying fish in the air, or dips to water's surface to pick up floating refuse. May steal food from other birds. Sometimes feeds at night.
Eggs
One, rarely two. Whitish to brown, blotched with reddish-brown. Incubation is by both sexes, 28-35 days, usually 30-31. Young: Within 2-3 days after hatching, young leaves nest and joins others in group called a "creche." Both parents bring food; parents and offspring are able to recognize each other by voice, so that adults feed only their own young. Age at first flight about 4-5 weeks. Young remain with parents for up to 8 months or more, migrating south with them.
Young
Within 2-3 days after hatching, young leaves nest and joins others in group called a "creche." Both parents bring food; parents and offspring are able to recognize each other by voice, so that adults feed only their own young. Age at first flight about 4-5 weeks. Young remain with parents for up to 8 months or more, migrating south with them.
Diet
Fish, crustaceans. Feeds mostly on small fish (up to 4" long, sometimes up to 7") and crustaceans, especially crabs. Eats wide variety of small fish, also shrimp, squid. Soft-shelled blue crabs are major items in diet on Atlantic Coast.
Nesting
Usually first breeds at age of 4 years. Nests in colonies. Courtship involves high spiraling flights by two or more birds. On ground, male presents food to female; both birds bow, strut in circles. Nest site is on ground (usually sandy) in the open. Nest (probably built by both sexes) is a shallow depression, with or without sparse lining of debris.
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- All Seasons - Common
- All Seasons - Uncommon
- Breeding - Common
- Breeding - Uncommon
- Winter - Common
- Winter - Uncommon
- Migration - Common
- Migration - Uncommon
Songs and Calls
Harsh kee-rare, like Caspian Tern but higher pitched.How Climate Change Will Reshape the Range of the Royal Tern
Audubon’s scientists have used 140 million bird observations and sophisticated climate models to project how climate change will affect this bird’s range in the future.
Zoom in to see how this species’s current range will shift, expand, and contract under increased global temperatures.
Climate threats facing the Royal 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.
