Need help with this Tern. I thought juvenile Crested but the beak seems darker than P&K indicates for the species. Taken at Arno Bay, Eyre Peninsula,SA, end of January.
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Hello Rick
yes, a juvenile tern but not Crested Tern as the juvenile doesn't have a black beak.
my 1st thought is Gull-billed Tern but I would like to check my books
Peter
I reckon young Whiskered Tern.
Resurrecting an old thread here but it's been bugging me as I go back and keyword.
Only have a couple of photos of Adult Gull-billed but lots of Whiskered juveniles.
Whiskered seem to have a longer, thinner bill than this bird.
Have attached a couple of definate Whiskered for comparison.
I'm still confident your birds in post #1 are Whiskered Terns.
The view angles of the bills in post #4 are different to post #1, so hard to compare relative length & shape.
Thanks Steve, did notice that after posting.
P&K digital shows a juvenile Whiskered in very close profile to the first bird and does look very similar.