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 Soberanía National Park
Sandwich Tern
Thalasseus sandvicensis
Elegant Tern
Thalasseus elegans
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
Larus pipixcan
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Gull-billed Tern
Gelochelidon nilotica
Black Tern
Chlidonias niger
Common Tern
Sterna hirundo
Caspian Tern
Hydroprogne caspia
Inca Tern
Larosterna inca
American Herring Gull
Larus smithsonianus
Wattled Jacana
Jacana jacana
Southern Lapwing
Vanellus chilensis
📅 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 Soberanía National Park?
About 3% of visitor-days record a Royal Tern sighting in Soberanía National Park, based on 268 observer-days of citizen-science data from GBIF.
When is the best time to see Royal Tern in Soberanía National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Royal Tern in Soberanía National Park in our monthly data.