Medium large. Pelagic. Long forked tail. Sexes alike.
Adults: Forehead, narrow white eyebrow form a 'V'. Lores, continuing through eye to meet the cap, black. Eye, dark brown. Collar, grey. Back, tail, dark brownish-grey, contrasting with blackish-grey wings. Outertail feather has a white outer web at basal half. Underparts, white, washed with grey. Underwing coverts, white, contrasting sharply with black flight feathers. Bill, black. Legs, black.
Immatures: Forecrown mottled with white making 'V' on head less distinct. Upperparts browner, and some feathers edged with buff. Sides of breast, flanks, washed with grey.
Other Scientific Names
Onychoprion anaethetus [AOU checklist (1998 + supplements)], Onychoprion anaethetus [Christidis and Boles (2008)]
Other Names (World)
Bridled Tern, Brown-winged Tern, Dog Tern, Panayan Tern, Smaller Sooty Tern
Habits
Mostly pelagic. Forages by dipping down low over water plucking food from the surface. Will rest on surface of water.
Food
Carnivorous. Almost entirely fish, but also crustaceans and aquatic insects. Also molluscs.
Voice
A puppy-like, double yap 'wup wup', a rising mellow whistled 'weeeep' and a quavering 'nyaauw'. A 'ke-eeeee' uttered in courtship. Away from colonies generally silent.
Bridled Tern (Onychoprion anaethetus) [XC197147]
by from Off shore Goa coast (aprox 20kms), India (call, flight call)
Bridled Tern (Onychoprion anaethetus) [XC472373]
by Kaeden Bim from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (flight call)
Nest
A depression in sand, concealed under a tussock of grass, sometimes in a crevice between rocks, or under bushes. In colonies.
Eggs (Guide)
1; white to pink-buff, sparingly spotted and blotched chestnut and sepia; long-oval; about 46 x 35 mm. Incubation: about 30 days; by both sexes.
Young
Semi-precocial. Fledge in 58 - 60 days. Brooded by both parents
Subspecies
Subspecies antarctica may be accidental to Cocos - Keeling Islands. Validity of forms named as novaehollandiae (Queensland to southern Australia) and rogersi (northern Western Australia) requires further study.
The following 6 subspecies are recognised:
anaethetus (Scopoli, 1786) - Breeds eastern Indian Ocean, from Sunda Island and Australia, into western Pacific Ocean, east to Solomon and Palau Islands and north to Taiwan.
antarcticus (Lesson, 1831) - Breeds Red Sea, Persian Gulf and western Indean Ocean, south to Maldive and Mascarene Islands.
melanopterus Swainson, 1837 - Breeds West Indies and West Africa.
nelsoni (Ridgway, 1919) - Breeds Pacific coast of Mexico and Central America.
fuligulus Lichtenstein, 1844 - Red Sea and eastern Africa through Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea to western India.
recognitus (Mathews, 1912) - West Indies, Belize and islands off northern Venezuela.
Similar Species
Sooty Tern (Onychoprion fuscatus)
Larger. Has all black upperparts. Has a broad white forehead that reaches the eye, but does not extend behind. Lacks a pale collar. Outer web of outermost tail feathers clearly white.
Compare Images
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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BirdLife International Species Factsheet