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Difference between revisions of "River Tern" - BirdForum Opus

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[[Image:River_Tern2.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by {{user|James+Williams|James Williams}}<br /> Ranganatithu, near Mysore, Southern [[India]], January 2007]]
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[[Image:River_Tern2.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo &copy; by {{user|James+Williams|James Williams}}<br /> Ranganatithu, near Mysore, Southern [[India]], January 2007]]
 
;[[:Category:Sterna|Sterna]] aurantia
 
;[[:Category:Sterna|Sterna]] aurantia
  
 
==Identification==
 
==Identification==
[[Image:river_tern_alok.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Winter Plumage<br />Photo by {{user|aloktewari|Alok Tewari}}<br /> Jhajjar, Haryana [[India]], Dec-2016]]
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[[Image:river_tern_alok.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Winter Plumage<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|aloktewari|Alok Tewari}}<br /> Jhajjar, Haryana [[India]], Dec-2016]]
 
38–46 cm (15-18 inches)
 
38–46 cm (15-18 inches)
 
====Breeding====
 
====Breeding====
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*Stout yellow bill
 
*Stout yellow bill
 
*Red legs
 
*Red legs
[[Image:River_Tern.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Photo by {{user|alkumaheerd|alkumaheerd}}<br />Emer Ab-bandan, Golestan, [[Iran]], January 2005]]
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[[Image:River_Tern.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Photo &copy; by {{user|alkumaheerd|alkumaheerd}}<br />Emer Ab-bandan, Golestan, [[Iran]], January 2005]]
 
====Winter====
 
====Winter====
 
*Greyish-white cap with black streaks
 
*Greyish-white cap with black streaks
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They feed by plunge-diving.
 
They feed by plunge-diving.
 
====Breeding====
 
====Breeding====
They nest in a ground scrape, often on bare rock or sand. The clutch consists of 3 greenish-grey to buff eggs, which are blotched and streaked with brown.
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They nest in a ground scrape, often on bare rock or sand. The clutch contains 3 greenish-grey to buff eggs, which are blotched and streaked with brown.
 
==References==
 
==References==
#{{Ref-Clements6thAug14}}#Wikipedia
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#{{Ref-Clements6thAug18}}#Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2015)
#Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2015)
 
 
{{ref}}
 
{{ref}}
 
==External Links==
 
==External Links==
{{GSearch|Sterna+aurantia}}  
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{{GSearch|"Sterna aurantia" {{!}} "River tern"}}
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{{VSearch|"Sterna aurantia" {{!}} "River tern"}}
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{{GS-checked}}1
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<br />
 
<br />
 
<br />
{{Video|River_Tern}}
 
 
  
[[Category:Birds]][[Category:Sterna]] [[Category:Videos]]
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[[Category:Birds]][[Category:Sterna]]

Latest revision as of 22:25, 15 May 2023

Photo © by James Williams
Ranganatithu, near Mysore, Southern India, January 2007
Sterna aurantia

Identification

Winter Plumage
Photo © by Alok Tewari
Jhajjar, Haryana India, Dec-2016

38–46 cm (15-18 inches)

Breeding

  • Black crown
  • Dark grey upperparts
  • White underparts
  • Black lores
  • Deeply forked tail with long flexible streamers
  • Long pointed wings
  • Stout yellow bill
  • Red legs
Photo © by alkumaheerd
Emer Ab-bandan, Golestan, Iran, January 2005

Winter

  • Greyish-white cap with black streaks
  • Dark eye mask
  • Dusky bill tip

The sexes are similar
Juveniles

  • Brown head
  • Grey upperparts with brown marks
  • Grey breast sides
  • White underparts
  • Yellowish bill with a dark tip

Distribution

Asia: found from Pakistan to southern India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and south-western China.

Occasionally observed in Iran.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species[1].

Habitat

Breeds on the sandy islands of freshwater inland rivers and lakes. They rarely visit coasts and estuaries.

Behaviour

Diet

Their diet consists of fish, crustaceans, tadpoles and aquatic insects. Has been recorded as eating a frog.

They feed by plunge-diving.

Breeding

They nest in a ground scrape, often on bare rock or sand. The clutch contains 3 greenish-grey to buff eggs, which are blotched and streaked with brown.

References

  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2015)

Recommended Citation

External Links


GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1

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