Wildlifeof China
Bridled Tern
Gulls, Terns & Skuas
Photo: Julien Renoult · CC BY 4.0
Onychoprion anaethetus
Basic stats
Habitat
Tropical oceans
Range
Tropical oceans; breeds in Mexico, the Caribbean, west Africa, around Arabia, Southeast Asia and Australasia
Size
30-32cm
Wingspan
77-81cm
The bridled tern is a medium-sized tern of the tropical oceans, 30 to 32 cm long with a wingspan of 77 to 81 cm, similar in size to the common tern but more heavily built. It has long wings, a deeply forked tail, dark grey upperparts and white underparts, with a white forehead and eyebrows and a striking white collar on the hindneck. The legs and bill are black. It is paler-backed than the similar sooty tern (Wikipedia, general species account).
It is migratory and dispersive, and much more marine in habit than most terns. The species name means senseless, referring to its tameness around people.
Quick answers
- What habitat does the Bridled Tern live in?
- Tropical oceans
- Where is the Bridled Tern found?
- Tropical oceans; breeds in Mexico, the Caribbean, west Africa, around Arabia, Southeast Asia and Australasia
- How big is the Bridled Tern?
- 30-32cm
- What is the wingspan of the Bridled Tern?
- 77-81cm