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Crested Tern

(Sterna bergii)
Alternative names: "Swift Tern", "Greater Crested Tern"
Size: 43-48 cm

Sightings

We have first spotted Crested Terns in Oman in the area of Quriyyat, about 100 km east of Muscat, in May 2010.

Additional information

Also seen and photographed by us in Australia.

Photos

Crested Terns, with an adult bird in the centre foreground, seen together with a White-cheeked Tern (right) and a Sandwich Tern (left)

Crested Terns (yellow bills), seen together with several other species of terns: Lesser Crested Terns (orange bills), White-cheeked Terns (foreground and left), Sandwich Terns (far right and near centre back)

Lateral view of a Crested Tern (click on image to also see two Lesser Crested Terns)

Food

Like all terns, Crested Terns feed on fish, which they catch with their bills just under the surface of water in a steep high-speed dive from considerable height.

These pages are largely based on our own observations. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.