Terns, SA (1 Viewer)

[opisska]

From the Farasan ferry.

In this area, most of terns were Lesser Crested, with some Greater Crested, Whiskered, White-winged, Gull-billed, Caspian, Saunder's and possibly Little (and one lone Brown Noddy, incidentally sitting on the other end of this very buoy) - but this group is the one singular set of terns that looks like neither of the above. White-cheeked perhaps? Unfortunately it's not possible to be outside on the ferry, so photos are affected by the windows.

Thanks!

 

[Muppit17]

From the Farasan ferry.

In this area, most of terns were Lesser Crested, with some Greater Crested, Whiskered, White-winged, Gull-billed, Caspian, Saunder's and possibly Little (and one lone Brown Noddy, incidentally sitting on the other end of this very buoy) - but this group is the one singular set of terns that looks like neither of the above. White-cheeked perhaps? Unfortunately it's not possible to be outside on the ferry, so photos are affected by the windows.

Thanks!

I would agree with your ID. All seem to be the same species, and these are in winter plumage except the one on the far left that is moulting into breeding plumage.

 

[opisska]

Cool, that's a lifer for my wife!

 

[THE_FERN]

How does one rule out common tern?

 

[Butty]

...or indeed rule in white-cheeked tern? In cases such as this where the ID is clearly difficult, and requires far more than just a quick glance at a field-guide plate to confirm it, a few words (at least) of explanation/reason really are... well... essential.
(For those that don't know, SA = Saudi Arabia, and the Farasans are islands in the southern Red Sea.)

 

[Muppit17]

...or indeed rule in white-cheeked tern? In cases such as this where the ID is clearly difficult, and requires far more than just a quick glance at a field-guide plate to confirm it, a few words (at least) of explanation/reason really are... well... essential.
(For those that don't know, SA = Saudi Arabia, and the Farasans are islands in the southern Red Sea.)

Well that's me told anyway

And didn't even look at a fieldguide either.

I have seen White-cheeked tern in both the Gulf and Red Sea in the past. I would agree that trying to separate non-breeding Common is very tricky and I wouldn't try it from a photo, but is relatively straight forward in real life once you have got your eye-in (certainly when I lived in the Gulf). Hence I concentrated solely on the moulting bird approaching breeding plumage on the far left of the photo.

Although Common Tern starts to move into the Red Sea in Feb my understanding is it is pretty scarce in late Feb/early March, whilst WC Tern is relatively common.

In my opinion at this time of year, it goes beyond the pattern of a Common tern. Darker on mantle and upper breast than a CT but typical of WCT (Starting to give that Whiskered Tern vibe that is typical of the patterning of the species).

I could always be wrong - but that is my opinion.

 

[Butty]

didn't even look at a fieldguide either

I was referring to the questioner looking at a field guide (not you). Often in an ID query, all that is required is to point a questioner at the right page of a field guide, and the reasons for the ID will then be obvious. With a difficult ID though, that's not enough (assuming that the questioner and other forum members wish to learn something and not just be told the answer).

Darker on mantle and upper breast than a CT

👍🏻 Thanks.

 

[opisska]

Well my reasoning for the question was that for the separation of Common and White-cheeked, both guides I have mention (apart of things visible on in flight) mainly build, bill shape and overall impression, which I presume would be easier to judge for anyone directly familiar with both species. I am of course quite familiar with Common Tern, having seen many of them, but mostly in breeding plumage - yet these birds make me feel unsatisfactory for a common tern purely on overall impression of shape, by pointing out specific reasons is difficult. I find the reasoning with moulting interesting and an angle I would not have invented myself.

 

[MJB]

...or indeed rule in white-cheeked tern? In cases such as this where the ID is clearly difficult, and requires far more than just a quick glance at a field-guide plate to confirm it, a few words (at least) of explanation/reason really are... well... essential.
(For those that don't know, SA = Saudi Arabia, and the Farasans are islands in the southern Red Sea.)

The (An?) official abbreviation for Saudi Arabia is KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), one reason being that SA for South Africa dates back to the late 19th century...
MJB

 

[Butty]

Better still... Let's just not use abbreviations: they confuse and exclude those who happen not to know them.

 

[THE_FERN]

The (An?) official abbreviation for Saudi Arabia is KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), one reason being that SA for South Africa dates back to the late 19th century...
MJB

ISO 2 is SA...

 

[Jos Stratford]

Better still... Let's just not use abbreviations: they confuse and exclude those who happen not to know them.

Says he that twice used ID as an abbreviation in his previous message! For non-native speakers, that is as likely to be confusing as any national country abbreviation.

Asking people not to use USA and UK? If official abbreviations are used, nobody is excluded - takes a few seconds to Google if by chance you don't know

 

[Butty]

Says he that twice used ID as an abbreviation in his previous message!
Asking people not to use USA and UK?

Please. Get real.

 

[Jos Stratford]

Please. Get real.

It was real, you repeatedly try to tell all to do how you think it should be yet don't follow the same anyhow.

 

[Butty]

If you've got a contribution to this point, give it. Drop the personal point-scoring.

 

[THE_FERN]

(before I had to look it up for work reasons I would have assumed "SA" meant South Africa)

 

[njlarsen]

(before I had to look it up for work reasons I would have assumed "SA" meant South Africa)

Agree