Sternula superciliaris
The Yellow-billed Tern (Sternula superciliaris) is a diminutive and elegant species of tern, measuring approximately 21-26 cm (8.3-10.2 in) in length with a wingspan of 43-52 cm (17-20 in) and weighing 30-50 g (1.1-1.8 oz). Its most striking feature, and the origin of its name, is its slender, bright yellow bill, often tipped with a darker color, especially in non-breeding plumage. Adults in breeding plumage exhibit a crisp black cap extending to the nape, a contrasting white forehead, and pu...
Primarily inhabiting large, slow-moving freshwater rivers, lakes, and lagoons, this species favors associated sandbars, mudflats, and exposed shores for nesting and roosting, typically found at low to moderate elevations.
Their diet consists almost exclusively of small fish, supplemented by aquatic insects, which they capture through agile plunge-diving from the air.
Yellow-billed Terns are diurnal hunters, frequently seen performing elegant aerial displays and plunge-diving for prey. Their foraging strategy involves hovering over water before rapidly diving head-first to catch small fish or aquatic insects, sometimes snatching insects from the surface or air...
The Yellow-billed Tern is widely distributed across South America, primarily east of the Andes Mountains. Its breeding range extends from central Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, south through eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and northern...
Least Concern
- The Yellow-billed Tern is among the smallest tern species in the world, renowned for its delicate flight and petite stature. - Unlike most terns that frequent coastal saltwater environments, this species is a specialist of South America's vast freshwater river systems. - Its bright yellow bill ...