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10

Sooty Tern (Onychoprion [Sterna] fuscata) Alternate name(s): "Wideawake Tern", "Egg-bird" Size: 33-36 cm; wing span 82-94 cm Weight: 120-240 g

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Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Sooty Terns are medium-sized terns. They have a black cap that also covers the entire nape of the neck, connecting to the black mantle and wings. The black eyes are set into a black eye stripe. Frons and front (throat, chest, belly, vent) are all white. Bill, legs and feet are black. The underwings are white, except for a broad dark-grey trailing edge and a small black spot near the alula. Juveniles are all dark-grey, expect the vent, which is lighter grey. The upperwings are slightly scalloped. Twitcher's tip Compared to Bridled Terns, the Sooty Tern is somewhat darker in appearance.

Taxonomy, classification See Sooty Tern at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Sooty Tern is available HERE . Sooty Terns inhabit the tropical, subtropical and temperate seas around the world. They breed on rocky and coral islands and outside the breeding season will disperse widely. They are the species of tern with the most marine habits, spending most time (up to years) out at sea, without coming ashore. Sooty Terns, race "serrata", can reach the coastal waters of the Australian continent and offshore islands anywhere between about the NSW/VIC border in the South-East, around the northern part of the continent, to about Perth, WA, on the western side. Sooty Terns have a strong preference for the open seas when not breeding. During the breeding season they can be found in rocky areas or on beaches of tropical islands.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "serrata" B. Hensen reports spotting Sooty Terns, race "serrata", near Ned's Beach, Lord Howe Island, in November 2014. M. Mearns reports spotting Sooty Terns, race "serrata", on Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, in January 2016. E. Scott reports spotting Sooty Terns, race "serrata", along the coastline of Yuraygir NP, NSW, in July 2017.

Photos

Race "serrata"

ADULT

Sex unknown

Close-up lateral view of a Sooty Tern (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Lateral view of a Sooty Tern on the ground (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Near Ned's Beach, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Lateral view of a Sooty Tern in flight, with a view of the bird's underwing pattern (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Near Ned's Beach, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Lateral view of a Sooty Tern in flight, with a view of the bird's upperwing pattern (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Near Ned's Beach, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Two Sooty Terns in flight (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Near Ned's Beach, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Close-up lateral view of a juvenile Sooty Tern (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Sooty Terns with a juvenile (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Sooty Terns with a juvenile (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Lady Elliot Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, January 2016]

Sooty Tern with a young chick (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Near-lateral view of a Sooty Tern chick (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Dorsal view of a Sooty Tern chick (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Jan - Dec

Eggs: 1 ( - 3)

Incubation period: 26-28 days

Fledging age: ?

Sooty Terns can, depending on location and conditions, in principle breed any time of the year. In the tropics the core breeding period is around April-July, in the subtropical and temperate regions about September-November.

Nest building: ?

Incubation: Female & male

Dependent care: Female & male

Nest

"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal]

Type: Scrape

Material: Sand, rock pebbles

Height above ground: N/A

Sooty Terns nest in huge colonies. Their nests are just shallow hollows in sand, without any lining (except possibly pre-existing fine grass from tufts into which the nest is built).

Sooty Tern nest with one egg in it (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Blinky Beach, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Adult Sooty Tern with its chick (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Near Ned's Beach, Lord Howe Island, November 2014]

Eggs

"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay]

Size: 52 x 36 mm

Colour: Creamy, with varying degrees of dark-brown speckling

Shape: Tapered oval

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Tue, 1 September 2020, 20:13 +00:00