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 Manuel Antonio National Park
Elegant Tern
Thalasseus elegans
Sandwich Tern
Thalasseus sandvicensis
Larus pipixcan
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Bridled Tern
Onychoprion anaethetus
Black Tern
Chlidonias niger
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
Brown Noddy
Anous stolidus
White Tern
Gygis alba
Common Tern
Sterna hirundo
Sabine's Gull
Xema sabini
Black Skimmer
Rynchops niger
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
📅 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 Manuel Antonio National Park?
About 1% of visitor-days record a Royal Tern sighting in Manuel Antonio National Park, based on 19 observer-days of citizen-science data from GBIF.
When is the best time to see Royal Tern in Manuel Antonio National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Royal Tern in Manuel Antonio National Park in our monthly data.