Black Tern

C. n. niger, adult summer
Photo by Mirage
Netherlands, June 2007

Chlidonias niger

Identification

• Breeding (April - July): Black head, breast and belly. Uniform grey back, wings and rump/tail. White undertail. Bill black. Dark legs.
• Non-breeding: Underparts white, grey above. Falcon-like black hood. Characteristic black (or dark brown) line above shoulder, extending onto outer edges of breast. Legs orange/red. Bill black. Tail off-white with grey rump and upper tail coverts (white in White-winged Tern Chlidonias leucopterus).

C. n. niger, juvenile - white flanks.
Mihai Cristian Mihai
Vadu, Romania, August 2014

• Juvenile: Like non-breeding adult but with darker back feathers and coverts with distinct buff/lighter edges.

Similar species

See White-winged Tern for differences.

Distribution

Breeds in wetlands in central and eastern Europe, western Asia, and central North America. Winters mainly at sea, also on larger lakes and rivers, on the west coast of Africa and both coasts of Central America and northern South America.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

C. n. surinamensis, juvenile - grey flanks.
targetman
Covenham Reservoir, Lincolnshire, UK, September 2011

There are two subspecies^[1]:

• C. n. niger (Eurasian):

Breeds central and eastern Europe and western Asia; winters in Africa. Vagrant northwest to Iceland.

• C. n. surinamensis (North American):

Breeds North America; winters Central America and northern South America. A rare vagrant to western Europe.

The two subspecies are very similar in breeding plumage; the most useful distinction is that the underwing of C. n. niger is dusky grey, while the underwing of C. n. surinamensis is white. In winter and juvenile plumages, both have a white underwing, but the head and flank patters differ more obviously; C. n. niger has a sharply defined black crown, a narrow black 'peg' on the side of the neck, and white flanks, while C. n. surinamensis has a diffusely defined grey rear crown, a broad, diffuse grey-brown 'peg' on the side of the neck, and dusky grey flanks (see photos, right, for comparison).

A few authors have suggested they might be better treated as separate species, but none of the major authorities have taken this up at the moment.

Habitat

C. n. surinamensis, juvenile
Dmitry Mozzheri
Long Island, New York

Freshwater lakes, gravel pits and reservoirs, marshes, wet grassland; in winter on sea coasts and estuaries, and occasionally large lakes.

Behaviour

Diet

The diet includes insects, invertebrates and small fish.

Breeding

The nest is usually floating vegetation in shallow water (possibly on the ground close to water). The clutch consists of 2-4 eggs which are incubated for 21-22 days. The young fledge after 19-25 days.

Vocalisation

<flashmp3>Chlidonias niger (song).mp3</flashmp3>
Listen in an external program

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Wikipedia

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Black Tern. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 20 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black_Tern

External Links

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