bird · Charadriiformes · Laridae

Common Tern

Sterna hirundo Linnaeus, 1758 — also called Booby, Common/arctic Tern. Occurrence records of the Common Tern are shared on GBIF from around 56 parks and reserves in the directory, most of all Langebaan Lagoon Marine Protected Area (1 159 records), in 4 provinces.

IUCN: Least concernLaridae

56reserves with records

12 012records around them

4provinces

LCIUCN category

Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) — Photo: Alexis Lours · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Where it is recorded

Reserve	Province	Records
Langebaan Lagoon Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	1 159
Table Mountain National ParkNational park	WC Western Cape	1 156
Helderberg Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	1 138
West Coast National ParkNational park	WC Western Cape	1 105
Dick Dent Bird SanctuaryGame reserve	WC Western Cape	1 025
Lambert’s Bay Bird Island Nature ReserveGame reserve	WC Western Cape	905
Kabeljous Nature ReserveNature reserve	EC Eastern Cape	428
Betty's Bay Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	414
Stony Point Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	392
Stony Point Penguin ColonyNature reserve	WC Western Cape	392
Macassar Dunes Conservation AreaProtected area	WC Western Cape	354
Seal IslandNature reserve	WC Western Cape	347
Muizenberg CaveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	309
St. James SpringNature reserve	WC Western Cape	273
De Mond Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	253
Cape Recife Nature ReserveNature reserve	EC Eastern Cape	215
Lion's Head Hiking TrailNature reserve	WC Western Cape	213
Grysbok ParkNature reserve	WC Western Cape	206
Boulders Penguin ColonyGame reserve	WC Western Cape	165
Fernkloof Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	154
Pauline Bohnen Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	142
Steenbok Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	131
Burman BushProtected area	KZN KwaZulu-Natal	125
Beachwood Mangrove Nature ReserveProtected area	KZN KwaZulu-Natal	114
Cape Point Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	89
Featherbed Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	80
Paternoster MiddenProtected heritage site	WC Western Cape	72
Harmony Flats Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	71
Stilbaai Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	46
Fort D' Acre ReserveNature reserve	EC Eastern Cape	45
Agulhas National ParkNational park	WC Western Cape	44
Marcus Island Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	43
Kosi BayNature reserve	KZN KwaZulu-Natal	38
Robberg Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	38
Morris point / Uitkyk puntNature reserve	WC Western Cape	37
Sixteen Mile Beach Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	34
Vogelgat Private Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	29
Postberg Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	29
Jukani Predator ParkNature reserve	WC Western Cape	26
Kogelberg Nature ReserveProtected area	WC Western Cape	22
Walker Bay Whale SanctuaryMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	21
Cape Columbine Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	18
Kowie Local Authority Nature ReserveNature reserve	EC Eastern Cape	18
Rocherpan Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	16
Table Mountain National Park Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	11
Goukamma Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	11
SAS Saldanha Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	10
Noorsekloof Local Authority Nature ReserveNature reserve	EC Eastern Cape	10
Malgas Island Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	WC Western Cape	9
Bridle Drift Dam Nature ReserveNature reserve	EC Eastern Cape	8
Sodwana Bay National ParkNational park	KZN KwaZulu-Natal	8
Namaqua National Park Marine Protected AreaMarine protected area	NC Northern Cape	4
Mzamba Fossil bedsProtected heritage site	KZN KwaZulu-Natal	3
Doorspring Private Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	3
Soopjeshoogte Private Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	2
Zeven Puts Private Nature ReserveNature reserve	WC Western Cape	2

By province

Western Cape: 44 reserves
Eastern Cape: 6 reserves
KwaZulu-Natal: 5 reserves
Northern Cape: 1 reserve

Taxonomy

Class: Aves
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Laridae
Scientific name: Sterna hirundo
GBIF taxon: 9367409
Wikidata: Q18875

More of the Laridae family

Kelp Gull Greater Crested Tern Grey-headed Gull Hartlaub's Gull Caspian Tern Sandwich Tern Whiskered Tern White-winged Tern Antarctic Tern Little Tern Damara Tern

Source: GBIF.org occurrence records within the radius of each reserve's point; taxonomy and IUCN category from the GBIF backbone; photo from Wikimedia Commons, credit on the picture. Records near a reserve do not prove the species lives inside it.