Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Caradriformes)
- FamilyLaridae (Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers)
- GenusThalasseus (Crested Terns)
- SpeciesThalasseus maximus (Royal Tern)
Closest Relatives at Machalilla National Park
Elegant Tern
Thalasseus elegans
Sandwich Tern
Thalasseus sandvicensis
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
Inca Tern
Larosterna inca
Larus pipixcan
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Sabine's Gull
Xema sabini
Grey-hooded Gull
Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus
South American Tern
Sterna hirundinacea
Gull-billed Tern
Gelochelidon nilotica
Common Tern
Sterna hirundo
Black Skimmer
Rynchops niger
Dominican Gull
Larus dominicanus
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Royal Tern in Machalilla National Park?
About 8% of visitor-days record a Royal Tern sighting in Machalilla National Park, based on 77 observer-days of citizen-science data from GBIF.
When is the best time to see Royal Tern in Machalilla National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Royal Tern in Machalilla National Park in our monthly data.