Common Tern

Sterna hirundo Linnaeus, 1758

Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)
Phylis Cooper

Class
Aves (Birds)
Family
Laridae (Terns, Gulls and Relatives)
State Protection
Threatened
Listed as Threatened by New York State: likely to become Endangered in the foreseeable future. For animals, taking, importation, transportation, or possession is prohibited, except under license or permit. For plants, removal or damage without the consent of the landowner is prohibited.
Federal Protection
Migratory Bird Treaty Act
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act implements various treaties and conventions between the U. S. and Canada, Japan, Mexico and the former Soviet Union for the protection of migratory birds. Under this Act, taking, killing, or possessing migratory birds, including nests or eggs, is unlawful unless specifically permitted by other regulations.
State Conservation Status Rank
S3B
Vulnerable in New York - Vulnerable to disappearing from New York due to rarity or other factors (but not currently imperiled); typically 21 to 80 populations or locations in New York, few individuals, restricted range, few remaining acres (or miles of stream), and/or recent and widespread declines. (A migratory animal which occurs in New York only during the breeding season.)
Global Conservation Status Rank
G5
Secure globally - Common in the world; widespread and abundant (but may be rare in some parts of its range).

Summary

Did you know?

Common Terns exhibit a variety of breeding displays including a "greeting ceremony" between pairs where the female stands erect and the male bows, and a "parade" where the male walks in a circle around the female (Nisbet et al. 2002).

State Ranking Justification

Common Terns were historically impacted by hunting and the millinery trade in New York. They are currently threatened by restricted habitat availability, human-commensal predators, habitat loss from coastal development, and rising sea-levels from climate change. The Common Tern is state-listed as threatened by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation. There are 40-50 breeding colonies on Long Island each year with additional inland populations that are generally smaller and scattered.

Short-term Trends

The statewide distribution of Common Tern remained relatively stable between the first Breeding Bird Atlas (1980-1985) to the second atlas, being reported in 122 and 121 blocks, respectively (McGowan and Corwin 2008). Inland populations expanded from 25 blocks in the first atlas to 42 in the second (McGowan and Corwin 2008). Year-to-year variation in numbers on Long Island is generally high. Numbers peaked with 27,270 pairs in 1987 and were at a low in 2011 of 8161 pairs (Hays 1998, Jenkins 2018).

Long-term Trends

Common Terns were historically abundant on Long Island in the mid-1800s (Giraud 1844, DeKay 1844). It is unclear whether or not there were significant inland breeding populations during this time. Inland populations were first documented along islands in the St. Lawrence River in 1917 (Merwin 1918). After the passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918, nesting colonies began to rebound statewide (McGowan and Corwin 2008, Courtney and Blokpoel 1983, Peterson et al. 1985). More inland populations were established and first documented along Oneida Lake in 1929 (Stoner 1932) and in Buffalo in 1944 (Beardslee and Mitchell 1965). Upstate numbers declined in the 1970s, while Long Island populations grew with four new colonies (Bull 1964, Hays 1998, McGowan and Corwin 2008).

Conservation and Management

Threats

Common Tern colonies are threatened by human disturbance, high predation rates from predators associated with human development, flooding and habitat loss from storms, and rising sea-levels due to global climate change. Nesting birds can be disturbed by boating near saltmarsh islands, beach driving, and recreation near barrier beach colonies, leaving nests and young vulnerable to predation. Displacement by Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls has been an issue on coastal sites (Kress et al. 1983), and displacement by Herring and Ring-billed Gulls has been an issue on the Great Lakes (Courtney and Blokpoel 1983). Elevated levels of environmental toxins such as DDE, DDT, PCBs, mercury, lead, selenium, chromium, and cadmium have been found in Common Tern tissues, feathers, and eggs (Hays and Risebrough 1972, Custer et al. 1986, Burger and Gochfeld 1988b, Burger et al. 1992, Bishop et al. 1992, Nisbet 2002). Common Terns are particularly susceptible to the effects of DDE and DDT, which causes eggshell thinning, egg breakage, hatch failure, congenital deformities, and reduced reproductive fitness in adults (Nisbet et al. 2017). Although concentrations of organochlorides like DDT, DDE, and PCBs affected Common Tern populations historically, concentrations were already declining when first reported in the 1960s and 70s (Bishop et al. 1992, Nisbet and Reynolds 1984, Nisbet 2002). Significant levels of DDE, high enough to reduce hatching success, persisted in Common Terns in some Great Lakes sites into the 1980s (Weseloh et al. 1989, Hoffman et al. 1993).

Conservation Strategies and Management Practices

Management for Common Terns requires protection of nesting habitat from development and human disturbance. Posting tern colonies with conspicuous educational signs and symbolic string fencing prior to when the birds arrive in spring has reduced human disturbance. Discouraging gull colonies at some locations may be necessary to reestablish previous nesting locations. Gulls can be deterred through a variety of methods, including culling and disturbance by dogs (Kress et al. 1983, Kress 1997, Nisbet 2002). Researchers at some Great Lakes and Lake Champlain islands have had success deterring gulls by constructing a string grid system over nesting areas (Blokpoel et al. 1997, Nisbet 2002). The terns are able to maneuver around the string while the gulls avoid the site. Management of vegetation may be required at some sites to prevent overgrowth and predator control may be warranted in some areas.

Research Needs

Continued monitoring of nesting success and the annual population index counts would help identify the most successful colonies for conservation. These data would also highlight colonies with low productivity so that management actions may be taken to reduce threats. While a lot of research has been conducted on coastal breeding populations, little is known about the breeding ecology of interior populations. The northern range limit for boreal breeding populations is unknown (Nisbet et al. 2017). The highest priorities for future research are on the wintering grounds. Common Terns have been found wintering along the coasts of Brazil and Argentina (Hays et al. 1997, 1999), however, their distribution along the Pacific coast of South America is poorly known. Basic information on foraging ecology, energetics, and causes of death are poorly known throughout their wintering range (Nisbet et al. 2017).

Habitat

Habitat

Common Terns use a variety of habitats and may be found on coastal beaches, barrier islands, marshes, or inland lakes. They nest on sand, gravel, shell, or cobble in open areas with some scattered vegetation or other cover in which chicks can find shelter (Nisbet et al. 2017). Selection of nesting locations may vary by habitat in different parts of the state. On two islands in Oneida Lake, Severinghaus (1982) found Common Terns selected sites with dried grass more often than a stony substrate, and nests on grass hatched significantly more young than nests located on stony substrate. Common Terns have expanded into saltmarshes on Long Island since the 1970s (Buckley and Buckley 1980, Burger and Lesser 1978). This has lead to some conjecture as to whether beaches are the preferred habitat on Long Island and human disturbance has forced them to nest in lower quality marsh habitat subject to increased flooding (Buckley and Buckley 2000). Selection in the absence of human presence is difficult to determine; however, both habitat types are currently used successfully in New York (Buckley and Buckley 2000). Safina et al. (1989) reported that despite generally lower hatching success and generally greater nest destruction in saltmarshes on Long Island, colonies in both habitats produced similar numbers of fledglings. Most variability in nesting sucess was between colonies and years rather than between habitat types (Safina et al. 1989). Similarly, Buckley and Buckley (2000) looked at colony size, establishment, and stability, and concluded that marsh-nesting Common Tern colonies were not at any serious disadvantage compared to beach-nesting colonies.

Associated Ecological Communities

  • Brackish interdunal swales (guide)
    Temporarily tidally flooded temperate marshes in interdunal swales dominated by salt-tolerant graminoids. Individual swales occur as small patches positioned between fore-, primary and secondary dunes in a maritime dunes system, typically on barrier islands.
  • Great Lakes dunes (guide)
    A community dominated by grasses and shrubs that occurs on active and stabilized sand dunes along the shores of the Great Lakes. Unstable dunes are sparsely vegetated, whereas the vegetation of stable dunes is more dense, and can eventually become forested.
  • High salt marsh (guide)
    A coastal marsh community that occurs in sheltered areas of the seacoast, in a zone extending from mean high tide up to the limit of spring tides. It is periodically flooded by spring tides and flood tides. High salt marshes typically consist of a mosaic of patches that are mostly dominated by a single graminoid species.
  • Inland salt marsh* (guide)
    A wetland that occurs on saline mudflats associated with inland salt springs. The mucky substrate is permanently saturated and seasonally flooded. Plant cover is sparse and the number of different kinds of plants is relatively low.
  • Low salt marsh (guide)
    A coastal marsh community that occurs in sheltered areas of the seacoast, in a zone extending from mean high tide down to mean sea level or to about 2 m (6 ft) below mean high tide. It is regularly flooded by semidiurnal tides. The mean tidal range of low salt marshes on Long Island is about 80 cm, and they often form in basins with a depth of 1.6 m or greater.
  • Maritime beach (guide)
    A community with extremely sparse vegetation that occurs on unstable sand, gravel, or cobble ocean shores above mean high tide, where the shore is modified by storm waves and wind erosion.
  • Maritime dunes (guide)
    A community dominated by grasses and low shrubs that occurs on active and stabilized dunes along the Atlantic coast. The composition and structure of the vegetation is variable depending on stability of the dunes, amounts of sand deposition and erosion, and distance from the ocean.
  • Salt panne (guide)
    A shallow depression in a salt marsh where the marsh is poorly drained. Pannes occur in both low and high salt marshes. Pannes in low salt marshes usually lack vegetation, and the substrate is a soft, silty mud. Pannes in a high salt marsh are irregularly flooded by spring tides or flood tides, but the water does not drain into tidal creeks. After a panne has been flooded the standing water evaporates and the salinity of the soil water is raised well above the salinity of sea-water.
  • Sand beach
    A sparsely vegetated community that occurs on unstable sandy shores of large freshwater lakes, where the shore is formed and continually modified by wave action and wind erosion. Characteristic species that are usually present at very low percent cover include various grasses and other herbs.
  • Shallow emergent marsh* (guide)
    A marsh meadow community that occurs on soils that are permanently saturated and seasonally flooded. This marsh is better drained than a deep emergent marsh; water depths may range from 6 in to 3.3 ft (15 cm to 1 m) during flood stages, but the water level usually drops by mid to late summer and the soil is exposed during an average year.

* probable association but not confirmed.

Associated Species

  • Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii) (guide)
  • Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri) (guide)

Range

New York State Distribution

The Common Tern's statewide distribution includes Long island, along Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, islands within the Saint Lawrence River, the Finger Lakes, Lake Champlain, and a few sites along the Hudson River. The largest colonies in New York are found on Long Island and include locations on both the north and south shores and off the eastern tip (McGowan and Corwin 2008). Great Gull Island is the largest colony in the state, and in the western hemisphere, and Buffalo harbor is the largest colony upstate.

Global Distribution

BREEDING: Common Terns breed in North America from the Northwest Territories across central Ontario and southern Quebec to southern Labrador, south to Montana, North Dakota, northeastern South Dakota, central Minnesota, northeastern Illinois, northwestern Indiana, southern Michigan, northern Ohio, northwestern Pennsylvania, southeastern, central and northern New York, northwestern Vermont, northern and eastern Maine, southern New Brunswick and southern Nova Scotia. Breeds locally along the Atlantic coast from Newfoundland, Labrador, and Nova Scotia south to South Carolina. A few breeding colonies are located on Bermuda, Aruba, Bonaire, CuraƧao, and Los Roques (AOU 1983, van Halewyn and Norton 1984, Nisbet et al. 2017). Nonbreeders occur in summer at James Bay, throughout the Great Lakes region, along the Atlantic-Gulf coast, south in Middle America to Costa Rica, and throughout the West Indies. Common Terns also breed outside of the Americas throughout temperate Europe and Asia (see Nisbet et al. 2017 for description). NON-BREEDING: Common Terns winter along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Central and South America. On the Atlantic coast they winter from northern Colombia east across Brazil and south to Argentina. On the Pacific they range from western Mexico to northern Chile. Some stray birds winter along the Atlantic coast of North America, in the interior of South America, and as far south as the Straight of Magellan. European and Asian populations winter along the coasts of Africa, the Indian Ocean, throughout the western Pacific, and occasionally southwestern Europe (Nisbet et al. 2017).

Best Places to See

  • Sand City (Suffolk County)
  • Breezy Point (Queens County)
  • Buffalo Harbor

Identification Comments

General Description

Common Terns are a medium-sized tern with a medium-gray back, black cap, orange-red legs, and an orange-red bill that is tipped black.

Identifying Characteristics

Common Terns are a medium-sized tern, measuring 31-35 cm (12.2-13.8 in.) in total length and weighing 110-145 g (3.9-5.1 oz.). Breeding adults have a black cap and nape. They are medium gray above, lighter gray below, and have orange-red legs and an orange-red bill with black tip. The long outer tail feathers form a 6-9 cm (2.4-3.5 in) fork. The main flight feathers that extend along the outer edge of the wings and that form the lower border of the folded wing (primaries) have extensive black that stands out when the wings are closed. When birds are in flight, the leading and trailing edges of the outer primaries appear dark, and, in all plumages, a dark wedge is visible near the tip of the upperwing. Also when in flight, the outer edge of the tail feathers is dark gray, and the rump and small feathers covering the base of the tail feathers are white, contrasting with the gray back. In the winter plumage, the forehead and feathers between the eye and bill are white, the underparts are white, the bill is all black or black with a dark red base, and the legs are reddish black. Juveniles appear variable. The forehead is buff colored or whitish, which contrasts with the dark brown top of the head and ears. Many of the upperparts are gray with distinct or faint brown bars, and the feather tips are dark. There is a dark-colored bar on the upperwing. The collar and underparts are white. The legs are pinkish or orange-brown. The bill is dark with an orange or pink base. Primaries are grayish brown, secondaries are darker, and both have whitish edges. The tail is gray with dark edges. The fork is shallow, 3-5 cm (1.2-2.0 in). Birds usually attain breeding plumage by age four. Calls have a unique, sharp, and harsh-sounding irritable tone. The descending "kee-ur" or "kee-uri" advertising call and "kee-arrrr" alarm call of adults can be used to distinguish Common Terns from all other similar terns. In the late summer, juveniles have a grating flight call ("krrrri") and a relentless begging call ("kri-kri-kri-kri-..."). Nests consist of scrapes in loose substrate like sand, gravel, shell, or cobble. Clutches almost always contain between one and four eggs (usually two to three eggs). Eggs are smooth and nonglossy, with a fine grainy surface. They have a background color that is cream, buff, or medium brown, which is sometimes tinted with green or olive. The eggs are marked with fine streaks, spots, blotches, or thin lines of black, brown, or gray.

Characters Most Useful for Identification

Common Terns have a medium-gray back, orange-red legs, and an orange-red bill that is tipped black. The tail is comparatively shorter than most other terns. They display a dark wedge on the upper wing during flight (National Geographic Society 1999).

Best Life Stage for Proper Identification

Adults in breeding plumage are easiest to identify but juveniles and birds in winter plumage can also be distinguished from other tern species.

Behavior

Common Terns breed in large colonies, sometimes with other tern species. They are generally monogamous and establish long-term pair bonds (Nisbet et al. 2002). They exhibit a variety of breeding displays such as aerial displays, a "greeting ceremony" where the female stands erect and the male bows, a "parade" where the male walks in a circle around the female, and "scraping" where one or both individuals scratch the substrate with their feet. During the "honeymoon" period the female will join the male in his feeding territory and the male will catch fish and give them to the female (Nisbet et al. 2017, Nisbet 1977). Common Terns may aggressively attack predators and humans by dive-bombing and defecating on them. They may also desert their nests if they feel threatened. Entire colonies may temporarily flee nesting areas in response to nocturnal predators or desert breeding sites altogether in response to high predation, especially early in the breeding season (Gochfeld 1979, Kress 1997, Nisbet and Welton 1984). Adults may circle around other terns displaying abnormal behavior (such as when injured) and sometimes peck at them. This behavior was exploited during the nineteenth century by the millinery trade enabling a large number of birds to be killed at one time (Brewster 1879, Bent 1921). Common Terns feed in scattered small flocks along marshes or coastal areas. Coastal breeders sometimes form large feeding flocks, especially over predatory fish, which may drive smaller schooling fish to the surface (Nisbet et al. 2002).

Diet

Adults feed on a wide variety of small fish, crustaeceans, insects and occasionally squid. Chicks are fed mostly fish (Nisbet 2002).

Best Time to See

From May to mid-October along the coast and from mid-April to mid-Nov inland.

  • Active
  • Reproducing

The time of year you would expect to find Common Tern active and reproducing in New York.

Similar Species

  • Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii) (guide)
    Roseate Terns have a bill that is mostly black with varying red at the base. They are also paler grey in color than Common Terns.
  • Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri) (guide)
    Forster's Terns have a paler grey back, slimmer build, and a lighter orange-colored bill. They also have longer legs and bill and a longer more deeply forked tail.
  • Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea)
    The Arctic Tern appears very similar to the Common Tern with a slimmer build, rounder head, and a shorter neck and bill. Arctic Terns also lack the dark wedge on the upper wing and black bill tip. (National Geographic Society 1999)

Common Tern Images

Taxonomy

Common Tern
Sterna hirundo Linnaeus, 1758

  • Kingdom Animalia
    • Phylum Craniata
      • Class Aves (Birds)
        • Order Charadriiformes (Gulls, Plovers, and Shorebirds)
          • Family Laridae (Terns, Gulls and Relatives)

Additional Resources

References

American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.

Andrle, Robert F. and Janet R. Carroll, editors. 1988. The atlas of breeding birds in New York State. Cornell University Press. 551 pp.

Beardslee, C.S., and H.D. Mitchell. 1965. Birds of the Niagara Frontier region. Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences, vol. 22.

Bent, A.C. 1921. Life histories of North American gulls and terns. U.S. Natl. Mus. Bull. 113. Washington, D.C.

Bishop, C. A., D. V. Weseloh, N. M. Burgess, J. Struger, and R. J. Norstrom. 1992. An atlas of contaminants in eggs of fish-eating colonial birds of the Great Lakes (1970-1988). Techn. Rep. Ser. no. 152. Can. Wildl. Serv. Ottawa, Ontario.

Blokpoel, H., G. D. Tessier, and R. A. B. Andress. 1997. Successful restoration of the Ice Island Common Tern colony requires ongoing control of Ring-billed Gulls. Colon. Waterbirds 20:98-101.

Brown, R. G. B., and D. N. Nettleship. 1984. The seabirds of northeastern North America: their present status and conservation requirements. Pages 85-100 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2.

Buckley, P. A. and F. G. Buckley. 1980. Population and colony-site trends of Long Island waterbirds for five years in the mid 1970s. Trans. Linnean Soc. N.Y. 9:23-56.

Buckley, P. A., and F. G. Buckley. 1984. Seabirds of the north and middle Atlantic coast of the United States: their status and conservation. Pages 101-133 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2.

Buckley, P.A. and F.G. Buckley. 2000. Patterns of colony-site use and disuse in saltmarsh-nesting Common and Roseate Terns. Journal of Field Ornithology 71(2):356-369.

Bull, J. 1964. Birds of the New York area. Harper and Row, New York.

Bull, John. 1974. Birds of New York State. Doubleday, Garden City, New York. 655 pp.

Burger, J. and F. Lesser. 1978. Selection of colony sites and nest sites by Common Terns Sterna hirundo in Ocean County, New Jersey. Ibis 120:433-449.

Burger, J. and M. Gochfeld. 1988b. Metals in tern eggs in a New Jersey estuary: a decade of change. Environ. Monitor. Assess. 11:37-42.

Burger, J., I. C. T. Nisbet, and M. Gochfeld. 1992. Metal levels in regrown feathers: assessment of contamination in the same individuals on the wintering and breeding grounds. J. Toxicol. Environ. Health 37:363-374.

Burger, J., and M. Gochfeld. 1991. The common tern: its breeding biology and social behavior. Columbia Univ. Press, New York. 413 pp.

Courtney, P. A. and H. Blokpoel. 1983. Distribution and numbers of Common Terns on the lower Great Lakes during 1900-1980: a review. Colon. Waterbirds 6:107-112.

Custer, T. W., J. C. Franson, J. F. Moore, and J. E. Myers. 1986. Reproductive success and heavy metal contamination in Rhode Island Common Terns. Environ. Pollut. A 41:33-52.

DeKay, J.E. 1844. Zoology of New York; or, the New York fauna. Part 2: Birds. D. Appelton, and Wiley and Putnam, New York.

Ehrlich, P. R., D. S. Dobkin, and D. Wheye. 1992. Birds in Jeopardy: the Imperiled and Extinct Birds of the United States and Canada, Including Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California. 259 pp.

Erwin, R. M. 1980. Breeding habitat used by colonially nesting waterbirds in two mid-Atlantic US regions under different regimes of human disturbance. Biol. Conserv. 18: 39-51.

Giraud, J.P., Jr. 1844. Birds of Long Island. Wiley & Putnam, New York.

Gochfeld, M. 1979. Group adherence in emigration of Common Terns. Bird-Banding 50:365-366.

Harrison, C. 1978. A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of North American Birds. Collins, Cleveland, Ohio.

Hays, H, J. DiCostanzo, G. Cormons, P. de Tarso Zuquim Antas, J. L. Xavier do Nascimento, I. de Lima Serrano do Nascimento, and R. E. Bremer. 1997. Recoveries of Common and Roseate Terns in South America. Journal Field Ornithology 68(1):79-90.

Hays, H. 1998. Common Tern (Sterna hirundo). Pages 299-302 in Bull's birds of New York (E. Levine, Ed.). Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca, NY.

Hays, H. and R. W. Risebrough 1972. Pollutant concentrations in abnormal young terns from Long Island Sound. Auk 89(1):19-35.

Hays, H., P. Lima, L. Monteiro, J. DiCostanzo, G. Cormons, I. C. T. Nisbet, J. E. Saliva, J. A. Spendelow, J. Burger, J. Pierce, and M. Gochfeld. 1999. A nonbreeding concentration of Roseate and Common Terns in Bahia, Brazil. Journal of Field Ornithology 70: 455-622.

Hoffman, D. J., G. J. Smith, and B. A. Rattner. 1993. Biomarkers of contaminant exposure in Common Terns and Black-crowned Night-Herons in the Great Lakes. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 12:1095-1103.

Jenkins, K. 2018. 2017 Long Island Colonial Waterbird and Piping Plover Survey. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Nongame and Habitat Unit, Stony Brook, NY.

Karwowski, K., J. E. Gates, and L. H. Harper. 1995. Common terns nesting on navigational aids and natural islands in the St. Lawrence River, New York. Wilson Bulletin 107:423-436.

Kress, S. W. 1997. Using animal behavior for conservation: case studies in seabird restoration from the Maine coast, USA. J. Yamashina Inst. Ornithol. 29:1-26.

Kress, S. W., E. H. Weinstein, and I. C. T. Nisbet. 1983. The status of tern populations in northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. Colon. Waterbirds 6:84-106.

Levine, E. 1998. Bull's birds of New York State. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca, NY.

McGowan, K.J. and K. Corwin, eds. 2008. The Second Atlas of Breeding Birds in New York State: 2000-2005. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY. 688 pp.

Merwin, M.M. 1918. Common Tern nesting at Thousand Islands. Auk 35:74.

National Geographic Society (NGS). 1999. Field guide to the birds of North America. Third edition. National Geographic Society, Washington, DC. 480 pp.

New York Natural Heritage Program. 2024. New York Natural Heritage Program Databases. Albany, NY.

New York State Breeding Bird Atlas. 1985. Final breeding bird distribution maps, 1980-1985. New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Wildlife Resources Center. Delmar, NY.

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Checklist of the amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals of New York State, including their protective status. Nongame Unit, Wildlife Resources Center, Delmar, NY.

Nisbet, I. C. T. 1977. Courtship-feeding and clutch size in Common Terns. Pages 101-109 in Evolutionary ecology. (Stonehouse, B. and C. Perrins, Eds.) Macmillan, London.

Nisbet, I. C. T. and L. M. Reynolds. 1984. Organochlorine residues in Common Terns and associated estuarine organisms, Massachusetts, USA, 1971-81. Mar. Environ. Res. 11:33-66.

Nisbet, I. C. T., J. M. Arnold, S. A. Oswald, P. Pyle, and M. A. Patten. 2017. Common Tern (Sterna hirundo), version 3.0. In The Birds of North America (P. G. Rodewald, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. Available at https://doi.org/10.2173/bna.comter.03 (Accessed online June 26, 2019).

Nisbet, I. C. T., and M. J. Welton. 1984. Seasonal variations in breeding success of common terns: consequencesof predation. Condor 86:53-60.

Nisbet, Ian C. 2002. Common Tern (Sterna hirundo), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology; Retrieved from the Birds of North America Online: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/618.

Peterson, D.M., T.S. Litwin, D.C. MacLean, and R.A. Lent. 1985. 1985 Long Island colonial waterbird and Piping Plover survey. Unpublished report. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Seatuck Research Program, Islip, NY.

Safina, C., D. Witting, and K. Smith. 1989. Viability of salt marshes as nesting habitat for Common Terns in New York. Condor 91:571-584.

Safina, C., and J. Burger. 1988. Prey dynamics and the breeding phenology of common terns (STERNA HIRUNDO). Auk 105:720-726.

Severinghaus, L. L. 1982. Nest site selection by the Common Tern Sterna hirundo on Oneida Lake, New York. Colon. Waterbirds 5:11-18.

Spendelow, J. A. and S. R. Patton. 1988. National Atlas of Coastal Waterbird Colonies in the Contiguous United States: 1976-1982. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Biological Report 88(5). x + 326 pp.

Stoner, D. 1932. Ornithology of the Oneida Lake region: with reference to the late spring and summer seasons. Roosevelt Wild Life Annals 2:271-764.

Weseloh, D. V., T. W. Custer, and B. M. Braune. 1989. Organochlorine contaminants in eggs of Common Terns from the Canadian Great Lakes, 1981. Environ. Pollut. 59:141-160.

Wiggins, D. A., et al. 1984. Occurrence and timing of second clutches in common terns. Auk 101:281-284.

van Halewyn, R., and R. L. Norton. 1984. The status and conservation of seabirds in the Caribbean. Pages 169-222 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2

Links

About This Guide

This guide was authored by: Kelly A. Perkins & Julie Hart

Information for this guide was last updated on: June 28, 2019

Please cite this page as:
New York Natural Heritage Program. 2024. Online Conservation Guide for Sterna hirundo. Available from: https://guides.nynhp.org/common-tern/. Accessed March 19, 2024.