Common
Tern, Sterna hirundo
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![]() Common Terns are indeed common as nesters along the Atlantic coast; they are relative rarities, mostly in fall, near the California coast where I live. |
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![]() The Common Tern shown perched having its breakfast above and below was photographed across the pond in Regent's Park, London. |
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![]() The birds shown above and below here were photographed on the southern Maine coast in July. |
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![]() A few Common Terns like this one are seen every fall during migration on or near the California coast. |
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![]() This fall Common Tern was seen on a pelagic trip on Monterey Bay in fall, where either a Common or an Arctic might be seen. The dark wedge on the primaries identifies this as a Common. |
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![]() Send for the avian chiropractor... | |
![]() I posted this picture on a birding listserv for comment, inquiring if it showed a Common Tern, and an expert noted that the short bill suggested a juvenile Arctic, especially if the apparent dark leading edge to the wing was an artifact of the photo angle. An Arctic would be very rare, a Common not nearly so rare on the central California shore, so I have it down as a "Commic" Tern (Arctic and Common are often hard to separate when seen in flight), and have posted it both here and on my Arctic Tern page. |