Little Tern

Sternula albifrons

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
FamilyLaridae (Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers)
GenusSternula (Small Terns)
SpeciesSternula albifrons (Little Tern)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Garden Route National Park

1 Verified sightings at Garden Route National Park From 2019 to 2026

2,348 Verified sightings across all 40 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Little Tern

The little tern (Sternula albifrons) is a small seabird of the family Laridae. It is widely distributed breeding on the coasts and inland waterways of Europe, Asia, north and west Africa, and eastern Australia. It winters in the subtropical and tropical oceans as far south as South Africa and Australia.

The little tern was formally described in a sales catalogue by the German naturalist Peter Simon Pallas in 1764 under the binomial name Sterna albifrons. The type locality is Holland in the Netherlands. The species was moved to the genus Sternula when the genus Sterna was restricted to the larger typical terns. The genus name Sternula is a diminutive of Sterna, 'tern', while the specific name albifrons is from Latin albus, 'white', and frons, 'forehead'.

Four subspecies are recognised: S. a. albifrons (Pallas, PS, 1764) – breeds Europe and northern Africa to central Asia; winters to African coast and to western India S. a. guineae (Bannerman, DA, 1931) – breeds coast and Niger River basin, Mauritania to Gabon, and northern Kenya

S. a. placens Gould, J, 1871 – breeds coastal eastern Australia including Tasmania; ranges to Indonesia S. a. sinensis (Gmelin, JF, 1789) – resident... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Garden Route National Park

Larus dominicanus

Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely

Thalasseus bergii

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Thalasseus sandvicensis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Sterna hirundo

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Hydroprogne caspia

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Chroicocephalus hartlaubii

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Larus fuscus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Chlidonias hybrida

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Chlidonias leucopterus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Sterna dougallii

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Vanellus armatus

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Sundarbans National Park	🇮🇳 India	~20%
2	Yala National Park	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	~20%
3	iSimangaliso Wetland Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	~10%
4	Bako National Park	🇲🇾 Malaysia	~10%
5	Camargue	🇫🇷 France	~10%
6	Bali Barat National Park	🇮🇩 Indonesia	~10%
7	Doñana National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	~10%
8	Wilpattu National Park	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	~10%
9	Satpura National Park	🇮🇳 India	~10%
10	Komodo National Park	🇮🇩 Indonesia	<5%
11	Ningaloo Marine Park	🇦🇺 Australia	<5%
12	Wadden Sea National Park	🇩🇪 Germany	<5%
13	Cape Range	🇦🇺 Australia	<5%
14	Bandipur National Park	🇮🇳 India	<5%
15	Taroko National Park	🇹🇼 Taiwan	<5%
16	Daintree National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	<5%
17	Raja Ampat	🇮🇩 Indonesia	<5%
18	Wilsons Promontory National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	<5%
19	Białowieża National Park	🇵🇱 Poland	<5%
20	Tsavo East National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	<5%
21	Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary	🇲🇾 Malaysia	<5%
22	Nagarhole National Park	🇮🇳 India	<5%
23	Monfragüe National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	<5%
24	Gauja National Park	🇱🇻 Latvia	Insufficient data
25	Booderee National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
26	Fertő-Hanság National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	Insufficient data
27	Minneriya National Park	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	Insufficient data
28	Noosa National Park	🇦🇺 Australia	Insufficient data
29	Tanjung Puting National Park	🇮🇩 Indonesia	Insufficient data
30	Tangkoko Nature Reserve	🇮🇩 Indonesia	Insufficient data
31	Addo Elephant National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
32	Biebrza National Park	🇵🇱 Poland	Insufficient data
33	Ranthambore National Park	🇮🇳 India	Insufficient data
34	Snowdonia National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	Insufficient data
35	Garden Route National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
36	Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park	🇲🇳 Mongolia	Insufficient data
37	Namib-Naukluft National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	Insufficient data
38	Fiordland National Park	🇳🇿 New Zealand	Insufficient data
39	Sierra de Guadarrama National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	Insufficient data
40	Cairngorms National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	Insufficient data

← Back to Garden Route National Park

Little Tern

About the Little Tern

Recent sightings of Little Tern in Garden Route National Park

Closest Relatives at Garden Route National Park

Dominican Gull

Crested Tern

Sandwich Tern

Common Tern

Grey-hooded Gull

Caspian Tern

Hartlaub's Gull

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Whiskered Tern

White-winged Tern

Roseate Tern

Blacksmith Lapwing

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found