Little Tern

Sternula albifrons

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 Tangkoko Nature Reserve

3 Verified sightings at Tangkoko Nature Reserve From 2019 to 2026

2,337 Verified sightings across all 39 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 Tangkoko Nature Reserve

Sterna sumatrana

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Chlidonias hybrida

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Chlidonias leucopterus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Sterna hirundo

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Actitis hypoleucos

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Charadrius alexandrinus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Numenius phaeopus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Esacus magnirostris

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

LC Endemic

Turnix suscitator

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Himantopus leucocephalus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Pluvialis squatarola

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Tringa brevipes

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

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

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

← Back to Tangkoko Nature Reserve

Little Tern

About the Little Tern

Closest Relatives at Tangkoko Nature Reserve

Black-naped Tern

Whiskered Tern

White-winged Tern

Common Tern

Common Sandpiper

Kentish Plover

Whimbrel

Beach Thick-knee

Barred Buttonquail

White-headed Stilt

Black-bellied Plover

Grey-tailed Tattler

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found