Measurements
Both Sexes
- Length
- 13.4–17.7 in
34–45 cm - Wingspan
- 33.1–35.4 in
84–90 cm - Weight
- 6.3–10.6 oz
180–300 g
Other Names
- Cabot's Tern (English)
- Sterne caugek (French)
- Charrán de sandwich, Charrán patinegro, Charrán de Cabot, Gaviota de pico amarillo, Gaviota pico agudo, Gaviota piquiaguda, Golondrina-marina de Sandwich (Spanish)
Cool Facts
- The two subspecies of Sandwich Tern breeding in North America and Eurasia have black bills with yellow tips. A third subspecies known at the "Cayenne Tern" is found in the southern Caribbean and the Atlantic Coast of South America. It has an all yellow bill.
Habitat
Shore-line
Seacoasts, bays, estuaries, and mudflats, occasionally ocean far from land.
Food
Fish
Small fish. Some invertebrates.
Nesting
Nesting Facts
- Condition at Hatching
- Downy, eyes open, able to walk but stays in nest.
Nest Placement
Ground
Behavior
Aerial Dive
Flies over water with bill pointing down; plunges into water to catch fish.
Conservation
Least Concern
Major declines noted in Old and New World during nineteenth century, due mostly to millinery trade and egg collecting. Recent increases in population size noted in most of range.
Credits
- Shealer, D. 1999. Sandwich Tern (Sterna sandvicensis). In The Birds of North America, No. 405 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.