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 Ostional Wildlife Refuge
Elegant Tern
Thalasseus elegans
Sandwich Tern
Thalasseus sandvicensis
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
Common Tern
Sterna hirundo
Larus pipixcan
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Caspian Tern
Hydroprogne caspia
Least Tern
Sternula antillarum
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
Willet
Tringa semipalmata
Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopus
Whimbrel
Numenius hudsonicus
Semipalmated Plover
Charadrius semipalmatus
📅 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 Ostional Wildlife Refuge?
About 35% of visitor-days record a Royal Tern sighting in Ostional Wildlife Refuge, based on 188 observer-days of citizen-science data from GBIF.
When is the best time to see Royal Tern in Ostional Wildlife Refuge?
December has the highest sighting rate for Royal Tern in Ostional Wildlife Refuge in our monthly data.