Antarctic tern

2 Final Words So, what birds live in Antarctica? Around 46 species of birds live in Antarctica. The most common Antarctic birds are albatrosses, petrels, storm petrels, diving petrels, shearwaters, fulmars, prions, shags, skuas, gulls, terns, ducks, pintails, caracaras, sheathbills, penguins, and many more. In this article, you’re going to learn about the distribution, identification, and diet of some of these birds. Once you finished reading this article, we suggest taking a quick look at another article on the Read Also: Do Birds Lay Eggs In Winter? [ Birds That Live In Antarctica 1. Wandering Albatross Wandering albatrosses are one of the most common birds found in Antarctica. Typically, these birds breed on the Crozet Islands, Prince Edward Islands, and South Georgia Island. However, some of them are year-round residents on the east coast of the south island of New Zealand. Most importantly, wandering albatrosses have the largest wingspan in the world, measuring 3.5 meters. That’s why they don’t need to flap their wings so much while flying. Furthermore, they mainly feed on crustaceans, squid, and fish caught at night in shallow dives. 2. Southern Royal Albatross Most southern royal albatrosses live in sub-Antarctic Campbell Island, while some of them stay on the Auckland Islands. These magisterially named seabirds have a white body plus black wings and a white tail. In males, the inner upper wing’s leading edge turns whiter with age. Besides, they feature around 3 met...

Habitat Arctic Terns breed in treeless areas with little to no ground cover, in open boreal forests, and on small islands and barrier beaches along the northern Atlantic Coast. They forage over streams, ponds, lakes, estuaries, and the open ocean. They tend to migrate offshore although some individuals may migrate overland. Arctic Terns winter on the edge of pack ice in Antarctica during the Southern Hemisphere summer. Food Arctic Terns take small fish from the surface of the water or plunge-dive just below the surface. They eat a variety of small fish species generally less than 6 inches long including sandlances, sandeels, herring, cod, and smelt. They also grab insects from the air or the surface of the water. During migration, they frequently forage with groups of other seabirds following schools of predatory fish that drive smaller fish to the surface. Nesting Nest Placement Arctic Terns place their nests on the ground generally near water in areas with rocky or sandy ground. Sometimes they place their nests on top of short grasses or mosses. Nest Description Males and females make a scrape on the ground in an existing hollow or on flat ground. While sitting in the nest, they may add material to the rim of the scrape, using anything within reach from grasses to pebbles. Nesting Facts Clutch Size: 1-3 eggs Number of Broods: 1 brood Egg Length: 1.4-1.9 in (3.6-4.7 cm) Egg Width: 1.0-1.3 in (2.6-3.2 cm) Incubation Period: 21-23 days Nestling Period: 21-28 days Egg Descri...

​Description The arctic tern is a slender bird with narrow wings and short legs. This small but mighty flyer is well known for its long-distance migration, traveling each year from one end of the world to the other and back. The arctic tern's wingspan ranges between 25 and 30 inches (64 and 76 centimeters), while its body length averages 11 to 16 inches (28 to 41 centimeters). The bird's coloration varies depending on age and season. When arctic terns hatch, they are gray or brown. As adults, their feathers are gray or white during the breeding season. Their beak and legs are red, and a black patch covers their head and forehead. In the non-breeding season, the bird's beak and legs are black, and the black patch of color on its head shrinks. ​Range During the summer breeding season, arctic terns nest by the shore as far south as New England and Washington State. Their migration route follows the west coast all the way to Tierra del Fuego, the southernmost point of South America. Arctic terns can also be seen along the eastern coast of South America, Western Europe, Iceland, Australia, New Zealand, and on Pacific islands. Their winter habitat extends to the northernmost points of Antarctica. Breeding grounds range in type and include boreal forests, islands, tundras, and rocky beaches. After migration, the birds spend their winter on pack ice. During this time, they undergo a molt and lose most of their feathers. Sometimes the feathers are lost more quickly than they can be...

Contents • Ecosystem Basics • Arctic Ocean • Southern Ocean • Polar Ice • • • • Creatures of the Poles • Arctic Ocean • • • • • Southern Ocean • • • • Pole to Pole: Shared Species? • • • • Threats to the Poles • Climate Change • Overfishing • • Human Connections • Arctic • • • Antarctic • • Polar Science at the Smithsonian • • Travel to the ends of the earth—literally—and discover the polar ocean basins. Both the Arctic Ocean and the Southern Ocean are defined by ice and dramatic shifts between endless day and endless night. The environments at the poles are some of the harshest on Earth—yet animals have found ways to survive there against the odds. Although both are icy and frigid, the Meanwhile, the southern polar region has the opposite geography, with the huge landmass of Antarctica surrounded by the turbulent Southern Ocean. All but one or two percent of Antarctic land is covered by glaciers, some of which are more than 15,000 feet (4,700 meters) thick. In the Antarctic, the only human residents are Ecosystem Basics Arctic Ocean Polar bears are threatened by the loss of sea ice in the Arctic. (K. Elliott, NOAA, Hidden Ocean 2005) The symbol of the Arctic is often the polar bear, the pole's cute yet fearsome top predator. These What keeps this marine ecosystem going are organisms you can't see with the naked eye: microscopic phytoplankton and ice algae. Come March, the sun rises low in the Arctic horizon, and it won't set until six months later in September. During thi...

Picture of the Antarctic Tern has been licensed under a Original source: Own work Author: Butterfly voyages - Serge Ouachée Permission: GNU Free Documentation License The Antarctic Tern is classified as Least Concern. Does not qualify for a more at risk category. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category. The Antarctic Tern is a regular winter visitor to South Africa. The first birds arrive about April in the Western Cape and May in the Eastern Cape and numbers build up to a peak in August. Departure takes place mainly in September and October, and is complete by November, with only isolated birds remaining in South Africa for the summer months. It feeds at sea, and is often seen as far as 150 km offshore. of Antarctic Terns on King George Island was conducted in December 1990 and January 1991. Two study sites were selected near the Polish station Arctowski (62�09'S, 58�28'W). In The Netherlands, growth and field energetics of Arctic Tern (hereafter identified with suffix NL) and Common Tern chicks were studied at the Wadden Sea island of Griend (53�14'N, 5�15'E) during June and July 1989 and 1990. Nests at all study sites were marked and checked every second or third day from hatching onwards. The Antarctic Tern (Sterna vittata) is a typical tern. It ranges throughout the southern oceans. It is very similar in appearance to the closely related Arctic Tern, but is stockier, and the wing tips are grey instead of blackish in flight. It is, of course, in bree...

Basic Description A small, slender gray-and-white bird with angular wings, the Arctic Tern is well known for its long yearly migration. It travels from its Arctic breeding grounds to Antarctica where it enjoys the Antarctic summer, covering around 25,000 miles. Breeding birds sport a full black cap, short red legs, and a red bill. Arctic Terns are social birds, foraging in groups and nesting on the ground in colonies. They often rest on ice and fly on graceful and buoyant wings. Find This Bird Migration is the best time to go looking for an Arctic Tern, unless you have plans to visit their arctic breeding grounds or their Antarctic wintering grounds. They start leaving the wintering grounds in March, so you can expect to see them in coastal North America starting in late April with greater numbers passing through in May. They tend stay out to sea during migration, so consider joining a pelagic birding trip or whale watching trip as they can be challenging to spot from shore. Smaller numbers also breed along the north Atlantic shore, from New England north—a good region to check during the summer where they are easier to see from shore. • Arctic Terns migrate from pole to pole; birds in North America travel around 25,000 miles each year. • Downy Arctic Tern hatchlings come in two colors: gray or brown. And chicks from the same nest aren't always the same color. • Arctic Terns can live for decades, but they usually do not start breeding until they are 3 or 4 years old. • The...

Justification Justification of Red List Category This species has a very large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence 30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size is very large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern. Population justification Trend justification The population of S. v. sanctipauliis decreasing, but trends for the remainder of populations, and therefore the overall trend, is unknown (Delany and Scott 2006). Ecology Behaviour Breeding populations in the southern part of this species's range are migratory, post-breeding flocks migrating long distances to winter off the southern coasts of South America and South Africa (del Hoyo et al. 1996). Those populations that winter in South America arrive from mid April and depart again from mid-October, during which time the adults moult their flight feathers (del Hoyo et al. 1996). Some populations around Antarctica remain close to their breeding grounds all year round however and moult on ice-floes or icebergs on open water (del Hoyo et al. 1996). The species breeds between November and December although the exact timing varies depending on climate and food availability (del Hoyo et al. 1996). It usually nests in small l...