Thalasseus albididorsalis
A medium-sized, elegant tern, the West African Crested Tern is distinguished by its crisp white underparts contrasting with pale grey upperparts. Its most striking feature is a long, pointed orange-yellow bill, often with a darker tip, and a shaggy black crest extending from the nape. In breeding plumage, it sports a black cap with a white forehead; this cap becomes streaky or mottled greyish-white in non-breeding adults, though the crest remains prominent. Its legs are black. Measuring 37-43...
Exclusively coastal, inhabiting sandy beaches, estuaries, lagoons, and rocky islets along the tropical and subtropical West African shoreline. It prefers sheltered waters for foraging and undisturbed sandspits or offshore islands for nesting.
Feeds almost exclusively on small schooling fish, such as sardines and anchovies, caught by plunge-diving; occasionally consumes marine invertebrates.
The West African Crested Tern is a highly social species, typically observed in flocks, particularly during migration and on communal roosting sites like sandbars and remote beaches. Its primary foraging method is plunge-diving for fish, often hovering before expertly plunging head-first into the...
The West African Crested Tern has a restricted but generally stable range along the Atlantic coast of West Africa. Its primary breeding grounds stretch from Mauritania, through Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, with smaller colonies potentially extending eastward to Ghana...
Least Concern
- For decades, it was considered a mere subspecies of the widespread Sandwich Tern (*Thalasseus sandvicensis*) before genetic and morphological differences confirmed its distinct species status in 2005. - Its vibrant orange-yellow bill, often with a darker tip, is a key distinguishing feature fro...