Id Help - Alibag, Maharashtra, India - 4 (1 Viewer)

[mihir]

Photographed this month. Is this is a lesser crested tern?

 

[lou salomon]

having little experience with lesser and greater crested terns, i still think you are right with Thalasseus bengalensis. mantle looks pale, bill orange-yellow and not so deep based. also size relative to the gull-billed tern looks to be in line with lesser-crested. greater crested are really huge in my memory.

 

[Shahrzad]

Compared to the size of Gull-billed Tern, It appears to be "Lesser Crested Tern".

 

[andyb39]

Lesser Crested for me too on size, bill colour and upperparts coloration.

 

[Nutcracker]

Ditto to Lesser Crested; as well as the above notes, am I right that winter plumage Greater would also have rather less black on its nape?

 

[THE_FERN]

Yes lesser crested. Just thought I'd note difference between preview on phone (where bill appears pale yellow=greater crested) and what I actually saw when I opened the image (orange=lesser)