Terns · Netherlands
Caspian Tern
Reuzenstern · Hydroprogne caspia
A tern almost the size of a gull
No tern is bigger. A Caspian Tern is close to a large gull in size, and that thick, blood-red bill with its dark tip is hard to mistake for anything else.
The nearest breeding birds are around the Baltic. In Western Europe it is mainly a migrant, in spring and again from late summer into autumn, fishing over lakes, estuaries and coastal water. It flies with slow, heavy wingbeats and plunges steeply when it spots a fish.
Families often travel together, and the young keep begging long after they can fly. The call is a harsh, heron-like croak you can hear from far across the water.
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