Bahamas, Belize, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada (B) (P), Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Turks and Caicos Islands, USA (B).
Vagrant to Antigua and Barbuda, Iceland, Ireland, Jamaica, Montserrat, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, St Vincent and The Grenadines, United Kingdom, Virgin Islands (British), Virgin Islands (U.S.).
British Columbia south to central Californian coast and east to southern Ontario, Great Lakes and northern Indiana; New York (Long I) to North Carolina; Gulf Coast, from Alabama to Tamaulipas, north-eastern Mexico. Winters from southern California to Panama, and from North Carolina to Gulf of Honduras.
Rarity Status
Currently this species is not classified as a rarity in this country OR information has not been updated.
Population
Estimated population is 120,000 (2010).
Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri) [XC408569]
by Frank Lambert from Upper Newport Bay Nature Preserve, Orange County, California, United States (flight call)
Forster's Tern (Sterna forsteri) [XC544031]
by Paul Marvin from Tijuana Slough NWR, trail from south end of 5th street, Imperial Beach, California, United States (flight call)
BirdLife International Species Factsheet