General

Black Tern: A small waterbird that is black with silvery-grey wings, back, and tail, and a white vent. It has a rather short, sharp, pointed bill, and short, slightly forked tail. The long, pointed wings are used for rapid, graceful flight, as well as hovering over marshes. Adults in winter have red legs and are mostly gray and white with black restricted to the crown and face. Juveniles resemble winter plumaged adults but have light brown barring on the back.

Range and Habitat

Black Tern: Formerly a breeding resident, now a spring and autumn passage visitor to the UK and Ireland. European race summers in Europe and western Asian and winters on the west coast of Africa. This wetland tern is most often seen at lakes, reservoirs, coastal lagoons, and estuaries in England. The North American subspecies is a rare vagrant to the UK and Ireland.

Breeding and Nesting

Black Tern: Semi-colonial, with nests separated by 3 to 30 metres. Nesting sites are in freshwater wetlands. Nests are small cups of algae and larger vegetation, often damp and usually built just above the water's surface on floating matted vegetation or logs lodged in emergent vegetation.

Foraging and Feeding

Black Tern: In summer feeds mostly on insects. invertebrates, and small amphibians. Forages on the wing, and catches insects in flight. In winter eats mostly surface fish; doesn't dive. Forages in flocks of up to tens of thousands of birds.

Vocalisation

Black Tern: Call is a high pitched, shrill, metallic sound given frequently, especially when intruders are near nest.

Similar Species

Black Tern: The Black Tern in summer has much darker plumage than any other tern species in the region. Juvenile and winter are darker above than other terns and have dark spot on shoulder in flight.