Birds of Oman home   Bird names   News    Family groups 1-26    Tips   Glossary   Plumage   Thumbnails    General information    Credits    PHOTOS FOR SALE
NON-PASSERINES     1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9    10     11     12     13     14 15     16     17     18     19     20     21     22     23     24    25    26    PASSERINES
Common names sorted alphabetically: B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   O   P   R   S   T   V   W  

10

Whiskered Tern

(Chlidonias hybridus)
Alternate name(s): "Marsh Tern"
Size: 24-28 cm; wing span: 57-63 cm
Weight: 80 g (average)

Similar
species

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

Physical description

Click here for a physical description

Taxonomy, classification

See Whiskered Tern at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat

Click here for information on habitat and range

Sightings

Click here for sighting information

Photos

Race "hybridus"

There are no photos of Whiskered Terns from Oman yet, but we have photographed race "hybridus" in Europe.

Race "javanicus"

We have photographed race "javanicus" in Australia.

Food, Diet

Whiskered Terns feed on crustaceans, which they dig out of mud under shallow water (both saline and fresh water).

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

whstern_20220116_4.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Contact call? © MD
whstern_20220116_3.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Contact calls? © MD
whstern_20220116_2.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Contact calls? (Q&A) © MD
whstern_vc_20220130.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Contact calls? (Q&A; in-flight) © VC
whstern_20220116.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Contact calls? (Q&A; mob) © MD
whstern_vc_20211110_2.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Various (hunting & feeding) © VC
whstern_20220130.m4a javanicus
(NW NSW)
Various (juveniles? in-flight) © MD

More Whiskered Tern sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

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.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site?
If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.