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10

White-cheeked Tern (Sterna repressa) Size: 32-34 cm; wing span: 58-63 cm

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

Physical description Click here for a physical description White-cheeked Terns are medium-sized terns. During the breeding season they have a black cap that extends well onto the nape of the neck, white cheeks and light to medium grey front (neck, chest, belly and vent), of which usually the belly is darkest, and grey wings. The black eyes are surrounded by the black cap, while the frons (base of the bill) is also black. The bill is near-black, with a dark-red base of the lower mandible, possibly also all dark-red. The short legs and feet are red. In eclipse the front and cap become white, with some mottled grey feathers above a dark-grey nape of the neck. The bill turns black when not breeding. Juvenile White-cheeked Terns have strongly scalloped upperwing coverts with brownish-grey tints. Otherwise they resemble non-breeding adults.

Taxonomy, classification See White-cheeked Tern at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat 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 White-cheeked Tern is available HERE . White-cheeked Terns are a partly migratory or dispersive species. Their breeding range around the Indian Ocean extends from the coastlines around the Red Sea, the coast of East Africa to Kenya, the Persian Gulf and along the coast of southern Iran to Pakistan and western India. There is a population of White-cheeked Terns in eastern Asia, South-east Asia and Australia and another population resides in the Caribbean and along the East coast of the US. The eastern African population is sedentary, the rest are migratory. In Arabia White-cheeked Terns are found mostly as summer visitors, although some birds may spend the winters. They are more numerous along the coastlines of the Red Sea and of the Persian Gulf than along the south-eastern coastline of the Indian Ocean. White-cheeked Terns are a coastal species that is not found anywhere inland, except in the lower estuaries of major rivers. They have a preference for hunting near coral reefs, while their preferred habitats for nesting are on bare soil, such as sandflats, but also dunes, beaches and rocky shores.

Sightings Click here for sighting information We first spotted White-cheeked Terns in the region around Sur, East of Muscat, in May 2010.

Photos

ADULT

Sex unknown

BREEDING

Lateral view of White-cheeked Terns in breeding plumage
[Near Sur, May 2010]

White-cheeked Terns in breeding plumage
[Near Sur, May 2010]

Frontal view of a White-cheeked Tern in breeding plumage (the bird on the left raising its head), seen together with Lesser Crested Terns (orange bills) and a taller Greater Crested Tern in the background, with its yellow bill
[Near Sur, May 2010]

Near-dorsal view of a White-cheeked Tern in breeding plumage in flight
[Near Sur, May 2010]

In this photo several species of terns are shown: The second bird from the right and from the left are White-cheeked Terns; those with orange bills are all Lesser Crested Terns; the two taller birds on the right with dark bills are Sandwich Terns
[Near Sur, May 2010]

Here a White-cheeked Tern (right) together with a few Crested Terns (centre) and a Sandwich Tern on the left
[Near Sur, May 2010]

Food, Diet

Like all terns, White-cheeked Terns feed on fish, which they catch with their bills just under the surface of water in a steep high-speed dive from considerable height.

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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