Black-fronted Tern
Chlidonias albostriatus
A medium to small blue-gray tern endemic to New Zealand. Breeding birds have a black cap extending down to the bill and bright orange bill and legs. Non-breeding plumage dulls to a mottled gray cap and black patch around the eye, also seen in juveniles. Breeds only along the braided rivers of the eastern South Island. Will defend nest from intruders by diving, calling harshly, and hitting intruders on the head. After breeding, populations disperse to coastal areas, foraging offshore and near coastal farmland. A small number will visit the North Island. Call is a repetitive “kit.”
Identification
Measuring 29 cm (12 in) in length, the adult tern has predominantly grey plumage with a black cap typical of many terns. The underparts and rump are white, and there is a thin white streak running along the cheeks underneath the cap. The bill is red and legs orange. The black cap recedes from the bill in non-breeding plumage and becomes flecked with white.
Taxonomy
German naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster described the black-fronted tern from a specimen collected at Queen Charlotte Sound, Marlborough in 1832, giving it the binomial name Sterna antarctica, however the name had already been used for the Antarctic tern by French naturalist René Lesson the previous year.<p>The first valid description of the species was by George Robert Gray in 1845, who called it Hydrochelidon albostriata. Its specific name is derived from the Latin albus "white", and striatus "striped". Charles Lucien Bonaparte spelled its species name albistriata in 1856, which was adopted by subsequent authors until it was corrected by Walter Oliver in 1955.<p>Its taxonomic placement was unclear for many years, as its plumage and migration inland to nest suggested it belonged with the marsh terns of the genus Chlidonias yet it did not nest in marshes like the other members of that genus. Martin Moynihan described it as "the most puzzling case", ultimately placing it in Sterna as he suspected the similarity of its breeding plumage to that of C. hybrida was due to similarity in environment and observed that the nonbreeding plumage resembled that of other members of Sterna. Gochfeld and Berger (1996) followed in keeping it in Sterna, while Charles Sibley and Burt Monroe placed it in Chlidonias. A 2005 molecular study by Bridge and colleagues placed it as a basal member of the marsh terns, settling the issue.<p>The species has several vernacular names. Gray noted in 1845 that the Maori called it tarapiroe. It is called ploughboy or ploughman's friend for its habit of foraging for earthworms and grubs in newly ploughed soil.
- Scientific name
- Chlidonias albostriatus
- Authority
- (Gray, GR, 1845)
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Laridae
- Genus
- Chlidonias
Range and habitat
Within New Zealand, the black-fronted tern is found from the southern tip of the North Island, and along much of the eastern South Island from Marlborough to Southland, and to Stewart Island. There is an outlying population along the Buller and upper Motueka Rivers in southern Nelson.
- Breeding range
- AU : rivers of e South I. (New Zealand)
- Non-breeding range
- to coastal North and Stewart is. (New Zealand)
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Helmeted Hornbill
Rhinoplax vigil
Bizarre-looking bird, now very rare due to poaching for the ivory-like material of its bill. When perched, its most recognizable feature is the naked throat pouch which resembles an undercooked steak, chalky white in the female and dull scarlet in the male. When in flight, its long trailing central tail feathers easily distinguish it from any other hornbill. Scarce and difficult to see; listen for its far-carrying maniacal laugh in mature lowland and foothill forests.
Diamond Firetail
Stagonopleura guttata
Plump, tiny bird with olive back, gray head, white belly and throat, white-spotted black flanks, black breast band, and bright red bill in adult. In flight, bright red rump apparent. Dark between eyes and bill (lores). Juvenile plainer, with faint barring on flanks and grayish breast band. Inhabits open woodlands of inland southeastern Australia.
Yellow Canary
Crithagra flaviventris
A large canary with different-looking males and females. The male has bright yellow underparts, yellow-green upperparts, and a well-marked face pattern. The female is drab gray-brown with streaky underparts, yellowish edges of the wing feathers, and a yellow rump. Pairs and small groups occupy dry rangelands including coastal scrub, Karoo, and arid thornveld, where they are resident and nomadic, moving when food becomes scarce. The larger Brimstone Canary has a chunkier bill than Yellow Canary and prefers moist coastal thickets and woodland.
Start Your Bird Watching Journey
Identify a bird outdoors and keep the field guide close for your next observation.