Sterna
Encyclopedia
Sterna is a genus
of tern
s in the bird family Sternidae. It used to encompass most "white" terns indiscriminately, but mtDNA sequence
comparisons have recently determined that this arrangement is paraphyletic (Bridge et al., 2005). It is now restricted to the typical large white terns occurring near-globally in coastal regions.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of tern
Tern
Terns are seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily of the gull family Laridae . They form a lineage with the gulls and skimmers which in turn is related to skuas and auks...
s in the bird family Sternidae. It used to encompass most "white" terns indiscriminately, but mtDNA sequence
DNA sequence
The sequence or primary structure of a nucleic acid is the composition of atoms that make up the nucleic acid and the chemical bonds that bond those atoms. Because nucleic acids, such as DNA and RNA, are unbranched polymers, this specification is equivalent to specifying the sequence of...
comparisons have recently determined that this arrangement is paraphyletic (Bridge et al., 2005). It is now restricted to the typical large white terns occurring near-globally in coastal regions.
Classification
- Genus Sterna - typical white terns
- Forster's TernForster's TernThe Forster's Tern, Sterna forsteri, is a member of the tern family Sternidae. It breeds inland in North America and winters south to the Caribbean and northern South America....
Sterna forsteri - Snowy-crowned TernSnowy-crowned TernThe Snowy-crowned Tern or Trudeau's Tern is a species of tern in the Sternidae family.It is found in Argentina, south-east Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. It has occurred as a vagrant in the Falkland Islands....
Sterna trudeaui - Common TernCommon TernThe Common Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes...
Sterna hirundo - Roseate TernRoseate TernThe Roseate Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a number of geographical races, differing mainly in bill colour and minor plumage details....
Sterna dougallii - White-fronted TernWhite-fronted TernThe White-fronted Tern is the most common tern of New Zealand. It rarely swims, apart from bathing, despite having webbed feet. The species is protected....
Sterna striata - Black-naped TernBlack-naped TernThe Black-naped Tern is an oceanic tern mostly found in tropical and subtropical areas of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. It is rarely found inland....
Sterna sumatrana - South American TernSouth American TernThe South American Tern is a species of tern found in coastal regions of southern South America, including the Falkland Islands, ranging north to Peru and Brazil . It is generally the commonest tern in its range. It closely resembles the smaller, highly migratory Common Tern.-References:*...
Sterna hirundinacea - Antarctic TernAntarctic TernThe Antarctic Tern is a typical tern. It ranges throughout the southern oceans. It is very similar in appearance to the closely related Arctic Tern, but is stockier, and the wing tips are grey instead of blackish in flight...
Sterna vittata - Kerguelen TernKerguelen TernThe Kerguelen Tern is a tern of the southern hemisphere.This seabird mainly breeds colonially in the Kerguelen Islands, as its common name implies. However, smaller colonies are also found in the Prince Edward Islands and Crozet Islands...
Sterna virgata - Arctic TernArctic TernThe Arctic Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar breeding distribution covering the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and North America...
Sterna paradisaea - River TernRiver Tern (bird)The Indian River Tern or just River Tern is a bird in the tern family . It is a resident breeder along inland rivers from Iran east through Pakistan into India and Myanmar to Thailand, where it is uncommon. It does not occur in Sri Lanka...
Sterna aurantia - Black-bellied TernBlack-bellied TernThe Black-bellied Tern is a tern found near large rivers in South Asia. They have a black belly in the summer and a deep forked tail. They can sometimes resemble Whiskered Terns but the deeper fork and the black on the lower belly distinguish it from the shallow fork and black closer to the breast...
Sterna acuticauda (possibly Chlidonias) - White-cheeked TernWhite-cheeked TernThe White-cheeked Tern is a species of tern in the Sternidae family.It is found in Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Maldives, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, and...
Sterna repressa (possibly Chlidonias) - Fairy TernFairy TernThe Fairy Tern is a small tern which occurs in the southwestern Pacific.There are three subspecies:* Australian Fairy Tern, Sterna nereis nereis - breeds in Australia...
Sterna nereis
- Forster's Tern