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Little TernSize: 20-28 cm Weight: 50 g (average) |
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Similar species |
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Taxonomy, classification |
See Little Tern
at Wikipedia 
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Range, habitat |
(for details refer to a field guide) |
Little Terns migrate to Australia from the north. They are in principle found around large parts of the Australian seaboard, but can be hard to find because quite rare. In the west they go as far south as about Exmouth, WA, while in the east they go all the way around the east coast and parts of the south coast, including Bass Strait and the east coast of Tasmania, to about the area of Adelaide, SA. They are only found around the seashore, not inland.
Little Terns can be found in estuaries and above the sea just offshore and on beaches, where they nest.
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Sightings |
Three Little Terns were spotted by us flying parallel to the beach at Old Bar, NSW, near the Manning River estuary, in mid-September 2011. About 10 were seen by us at Bundjalung National Park (northern NSW) in April 2012.
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Photos |
Near-frontal view of a Little Tern in transitional plumage
Frontal view of two Little Terns in breeding plumage
Here the same two birds, seen preening
Lateral view of a Little Tern in breeding plumage in flight
The photos below are shown here for identification purposes. They could still do with some improvement...
Distant near-frontal view of a Little Tern in non-breeding plumage
Distant lateral view of a bird in non-breeding plumage
Here a different phase of the wing beat
Now displaying the underwings
