Data Zone
Taxonomic note
Thalasseus maximus (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) was previously placed in the genus Sterna as S. maxima.
Taxonomic source(s)
AERC TAC. 2003. AERC TAC Checklist of bird taxa occurring in Western Palearctic region, 15th Draft. Available at: http://www.aerc.eu/DOCS/Bird_taxa_of_the_WP15.xls.
Cramp, S. and Simmons, K.E.L. (eds). 1977-1994. Handbook of the birds of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The birds of the western Palearctic. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.
SACC. 2005 and updates. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm.
| Critically Endangered | Endangered | Vulnerable |
|---|---|---|
| - | - | - |
| Year | Category | Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Least Concern | |
| 2016 | Least Concern | |
| 2012 | Least Concern | |
| 2009 | Least Concern | |
| 2008 | Least Concern | |
| 2004 | Least Concern | |
| 2000 | Lower Risk/Least Concern | |
| 1994 | Lower Risk/Least Concern | |
| 1988 | Lower Risk/Least Concern |
| Migratory status | full migrant | Forest dependency | does not normally occur in forest |
| Land-mass type | Average mass | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | |
|---|---|---|
| Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident) | 73,800,000 km2 | medium |
| Extent of Occurrence (non-breeding) | 82,400,000 km2 | medium |
| Severely fragmented? | no | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | Derivation | Year of estimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population size | unknown | poor | estimated | 2009 |
| Population trend | stable | - | suspected | - |
| Generation length | 11.2 years | - | - | - |
Trend justification: The overall population trend is stable, although some populations have unknown trends (Wetlands International 2006). This species has undergone a small or statistically insignificant increase over the last 40 years in North America (data from Breeding Bird Survey and/or Christmas Bird Count: Butcher and Niven 2007) Note, however, that these surveys cover less than 50% of the species's range in North America.
| Country/Territory | Presence | Origin | Resident | Breeding visitor | Non-breeding visitor | Passage migrant |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angola | extant | native | ||||
| Anguilla (to UK) | extant | native | ||||
| Antigua and Barbuda | extant | native | ||||
| Argentina | extant | native | ||||
| Aruba (to Netherlands) | extant | native | ||||
| Bahamas | extant | native | ||||
| Barbados | extant | native | ||||
| Belize | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Benin | extant | native | ||||
| Bermuda (to UK) | extant | native | ||||
| Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba (to Netherlands) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Brazil | extant | native | ||||
| Cameroon | extant | native | ||||
| Canada | extant | native | ||||
| Cayman Islands (to UK) | extant | native | ||||
| Chile | extant | uncertain | ||||
| Colombia | extant | native | ||||
| Congo | extant | native | ||||
| Congo, The Democratic Republic of the | extant | native | ||||
| Costa Rica | extant | native | yes | |||
| Côte d'Ivoire | extant | native | ||||
| Cuba | extant | native | ||||
| Curaçao (to Netherlands) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Dominica | extant | native | ||||
| Dominican Republic | extant | native | ||||
| Ecuador | extant | native | yes | |||
| El Salvador | extant | native | ||||
| Equatorial Guinea | extant | native | ||||
| French Guiana | extant | native | ||||
| Gabon | extant | native | ||||
| Gambia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Ghana | extant | native | ||||
| Gibraltar (to UK) | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Grenada | extant | native | ||||
| Guadeloupe (to France) | extant | native | ||||
| Guatemala | extant | native | ||||
| Guinea | extant | native | yes | |||
| Guinea-Bissau | extant | native | yes | |||
| Guyana | extant | native | ||||
| Haiti | extant | native | ||||
| Honduras | extant | native | ||||
| Ireland | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Jamaica | extant | native | yes | |||
| Liberia | extant | native | ||||
| Martinique (to France) | extant | native | ||||
| Mauritania | extant | native | yes | |||
| Mexico | extant | native | ||||
| Montserrat (to UK) | extant | native | ||||
| Morocco | extant | native | ||||
| Mozambique | extant | uncertain | ||||
| Namibia | extant | native | ||||
| Nicaragua | extant | native | ||||
| Nigeria | extant | native | ||||
| Norway | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Panama | extant | native | ||||
| Paraguay | extant | vagrant | yes | |||
| Peru | extant | native | ||||
| Portugal | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Puerto Rico (to USA) | extant | native | ||||
| Senegal | extant | native | yes | |||
| Sierra Leone | extant | native | ||||
| Sint Maarten (to Netherlands) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Spain | extant | vagrant | ||||
| St Barthelemy (to France) | extant | native | ||||
| St Kitts and Nevis | extant | native | ||||
| St Lucia | extant | native | yes | |||
| St Martin (to France) | extant | native | yes | |||
| St Vincent and the Grenadines | extant | native | ||||
| Sudan | extant | vagrant | yes | |||
| Suriname | extant | native | ||||
| Togo | extant | native | ||||
| Trinidad and Tobago | extant | native | ||||
| Turks and Caicos Islands (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| United Kingdom | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Uruguay | extant | native | yes | |||
| USA | extant | native | yes | |||
| Venezuela | extant | native | ||||
| Virgin Islands (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Virgin Islands (to USA) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Western Sahara | extant | native |
| Habitat (level 1) | Habitat (level 2) | Importance | Occurrence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | Coastal Brackish/Saline Lagoons/Marine Lakes | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Salt Marshes (Emergent Grasses) | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc | major | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Estuaries | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Macroalgal/Kelp | major | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Macroalgal/Kelp | major | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Pelagic | suitable | passage |
| Marine Neritic | Pelagic | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Seagrass (Submerged) | major | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Seagrass (Submerged) | major | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel | major | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel | major | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs | major | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs | major | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy | major | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy | major | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy-Mud | major | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy-Mud | major | breeding |
| Altitude | 0 - 100 m | Occasional altitudinal limits |
| Threat (level 1) | Threat (level 2) | Impact and Stresses | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biological resource use | Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target) | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Negligible declines | Low Impact: 4 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Human intrusions & disturbance | Recreational activities | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Negligible declines | Low Impact: 4 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Purpose | Scale |
|---|---|
| Pets/display animals, horticulture | international |
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Royal Tern Thalasseus maximus. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/royal-tern-thalasseus-maximus on 26/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 26/12/2024.