Elegant Tern
Elegant TernElegant TernElegant TernElegant Tern

Elegant Tern

Thalasseus elegans

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
20–30% · Possible
overall probability at Channel Islands National Park
1,436 Verified records at Channel Islands National Park
August Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's active during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

The elegant tern (Thalasseus elegans) is a tern in the family Laridae. It breeds on the Pacific coast of southern California in the United States and western Mexico, and migrates south to Peru, Ecuador and Chile for the northern winter; in the late summer and fall, some also disperse north to Oregon and more rarely Washington. This species breeds in very dense colonies on coasts and islands, including Isla Rasa and Montague Island in Mexico, as well as South Bay Salt Works (San Diego) and Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in California. Exceptionally, vagrants can occur inland on suitable large freshwater lakes. The elegant tern feeds by plunge-diving for fish, almost invariably from the sea, like most Thalasseus terns. It usually dives directly, and not from the "stepped-hover" favored by the Arctic tern. Wikipedia →

20–30% of wildlife watchers report a Elegant Tern sighting in Channel Islands National Park, based on 1,436 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

Closest Relatives at Channel Islands National Park

Royal Tern

Royal Tern

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Thalasseus maximus

10–20% · With luck
Western Gull
LC

Western Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus occidentalis

70–80% · Very likely
California Gull
LC

California Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus californicus

30–40% · Possible
Heermann's Gull
NT

Heermann's Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus heermanni

20–30% · Possible
Ring-billed Gull
LC

Ring-billed Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus delawarensis

20–30% · Possible
Forster's Tern
LC

Forster's Tern

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Sterna forsteri

10–20% · With luck
Caspian Tern
LC

Caspian Tern

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Hydroprogne caspia

10–20% · With luck
Bonaparte's Gull

Bonaparte's Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Chroicocephalus philadelphia

10–20% · With luck
Least Tern
LC

Least Tern

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Sternula antillarum

5–10% · With luck
Common Tern
LC

Common Tern

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Sterna hirundo

5–10% · With luck
Glaucous-winged Gull
LC

Glaucous-winged Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus glaucescens

5–10% · Rare
American Herring Gull
LC

American Herring Gull

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Larus smithsonianus

5–10% · Rare

📅 Monthly Probability

<5
Jan
<5
Feb
<5
Mar
10–20
Apr
20–30
May
10–20
Jun
40–50
Jul
60–70
Aug
20–30
Sep
20–30
Oct
10–20
Nov
<5
Dec

☀️ When They're Spotted

Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)

☀️Diurnal
☀️🌙🌙12am6am12pm6pm12am

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 Probability
1 Paracas National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
40–50%
2 Channel Islands National Park 🇺🇸 United States
20–30%
3 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
5–10%
4 Bahía de Loreto National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
5–10%
5 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
5–10%
6 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
5–10%
7 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
8 El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
9 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
10 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
11 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
12 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
13 Redwood National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
14 Cumbres de Monterrey National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
15 Galápagos Islands 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
16 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
17 Utría National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
Insufficient data
18 Coiba National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
19 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
20 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
21 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
22 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
Insufficient data
23 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
24 Olympic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
25 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Elegant Tern in Channel Islands National Park?

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Elegant Tern sighting in Channel Islands National Park, based on 1,436 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Elegant Tern in Channel Islands National Park?

August has the highest sighting rate for Elegant Tern in Channel Islands National Park in our monthly data.

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