{"id":27570,"date":"2023-05-23T11:08:32","date_gmt":"2023-05-23T09:08:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.countryfile.com\/?p=146086"},"modified":"2023-05-23T11:35:36","modified_gmt":"2023-05-23T09:35:36","slug":"common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/rss_feed\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship\/","title":{"rendered":"Common tern guide: facts, identification and courtship"},"content":{"rendered":"

The common tern has a red bill with a black tip, and a rather flat crown. Learn more about this seabird, including what they look like, courtship and habitat with our guide to common terns <\/p>

By Dominic Couzens\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 23 May 2023 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

The common tern (Sterna hirundo<\/em>) isn\u2019t quite our most numerous tern<\/a> \u2013 birds don\u2019t have logical names \u2013 but it is, perhaps, the most adaptable.<\/p>\n

You are as likely to see it on a lake far inland as you are on the coast \u2013 it often breeds on \u201ctern rafts\u201d provided on reservoirs, for example \u2013 and it also has a broader diet that can include insects as well as fish.<\/p>\n

This is a common seabird<\/a>, with 11,000 breeding pairs, and can be seen from April to October.<\/p>\n

In this guide we take a closer look at the common tern, including what they look like, courtship and migration patterns.<\/p>\n

Interested in learning more about Britain\u2019s birds? Check out our guides to puffins<\/a>, gannets<\/a> and auks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Terns of Britain \u00a0<\/h4>\n

Arctic terns, common terns and little terns grace Britain\u2019s shores in the summers months. Learn how to identify them \u2013 and other tern species \u2013 with BBC Countryfile Magazine\u2019s guide to terns<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p><\/div>

\""Arctic\"<\/div><\/div> <\/div> <\/section>

Common tern identification<\/h2>\n

To identify terns, you need to look at bill colour, as well as tail length and underwing pattern. It\u2019s really difficult. The common tern has a long red bill with a black tip, and a rather flat crown; when it is standing the tail streamers stick out as far as the wing tips. Meanwhile, the Arctic tern has a shorter, more blood-red bill without a black tip, a rounded crown and much longer tail-streamers, which extend well beyond the wing tips. It also has shorter legs.<\/p>\n

\""Common\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Common terns catch fish with a plunge-dive\/Credit: Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Common tern breeding and habitat<\/h2>\n

In the early part of the season, when terns are pairing up, they have a delightful display in which a male presents to the female an offering of a fish it has just caught. The male offers it, held crosswise in the bill, and the female takes it, with much noisy calling from both parties. It looks beguiling, but unbeknownst to the male, the female is carefully monitoring the number of offerings. If the male\u2019s efforts fall short, the female may abandon him before nesting begins, reckoning that if he cannot provide for her, he won\u2019t do such a great job for the chicks.<\/p>\n

\""Common\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A common tern family on the beach with the mother sheltering two young chicks\/Credit: Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Otherwise, the common tern does \u201cterny\u201d things such as breeding in noisy colonies on beaches and islands, catching fish with a plunge-dive, and making life difficult for birdwatchers.<\/p>\n

\""Two\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Common terns have long, red bills with a black tip\/Credit: Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Seabirds of Britain<\/h4>\n

Discover some of the UK\u2019s most common types of seabird, where they live and the best places to see them with BBC Countryfile Magazine<\/em>\u2018s guide to seabirds<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p><\/div>

\""Gannets\"<\/div><\/div> <\/div> <\/section> <\/body><\/html>\n
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The common tern has a red bill with a black tip, and a rather flat crown. Learn more about this seabird, including what they look like, courtship and habitat with our guide to common terns <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":27571,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2023\/05\/common-tern-guide-facts-identification-and-courtship-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"The common tern has a red bill with a black tip, and a rather flat crown. Learn more about this seabird, including what they look like, courtship and habitat with our guide to common terns","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/27570"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}