A graceful seabird of the Southern Ocean, a close relative of the famous arctic tern but with a personality and range all its own. While the arctic tern is known for its record-breaking pole-to-pole migration, the antarctic tern is more of a homebody, spending its entire life in the southern hemisphere, circling the icy seas around Antarctica and its nearby islands. Despite living in one of the harshest environments on Earth, it is a bird of elegance, easily recognized by its sleek body, buoyant flight, and striking breeding plumage.

During the breeding season, adults wear their finest plumage: a crisp white body and wings, a bright red bill and red legs, and a full black cap that runs from beak to nape. Out of breeding season, the bill darkens and the cap recedes into a smudgy partial crown, but the bird never loses its graceful, streamlined look. Their long, pointed wings and forked tails make them agile flyers, capable of darting and hovering over the ocean surface with ease.

As true seabirds, Antarctic terns are tied to the ocean and coastal landscapes. They nest on rocky shores, cliffs, beaches, and even offshore islets in scattered colonies across sub-Antarctic islands and the Antarctic Peninsula. Breeding takes place in summer, when the ice retreats enough to expose nesting grounds. Pairs form long-term bonds, and both parents share in incubating their one or two eggs, laid directly on bare ground or among pebbles. Fiercely protective of their nests, Antarctic terns will dive-bomb intruders, from skuas to unsuspecting humans, with sharp cries and rapid swoops.

Distribution

Country

Population est.

Status

Year

Comments

Antarctica

2018

Breeding

Argentina

2018

Australia

2018

Bouvet Island

2018

Breeding

Brazil

2018

Chile

2018

Falkland Islands

2018

Malvinas

French Southern T.

2018

Breeding

Heard & McDonald

2018

New Zealand

2018

Saint Helena

2018

Breeding

South Africa

2018

Breeding

South Georgia

2018

Breeding

Uruguay

2018

Non-Breeding