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Arctic Tern

Sterna paradisaea

Least Concern (IUCN Red List)Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers
Arctic Tern, photographed by Marc Julien

Photo: Marc Julien · Unsplash · Unsplash License (licence)

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About the Arctic Tern

Elegant seabird with extremely long wings and forked tail. Adults are pale gray with white cheek, black cap, and red bill and legs. Very similar to Common Tern; note shorter bill, shorter legs, gray belly, and paler gray wingtips with very limited dark tips. Young birds show partial black cap and black bill and legs; look for pale gray wingtips and stubbier legs to separate from Common Tern. Rarely seen away from breeding grounds on coastal islands or small ponds in the Arctic tundra. Migrates offshore, heading for wintering grounds in Southern Hemisphere.

Species account: eBird.org, fetched 2025-12-26 · How these pages are made

Where it has been recorded

Recorded in 106 of the 253 countries we have eBird lists for. Each opens that country's checklist.

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