# Chinese crested tern (*Thalasseus bernsteini*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/chinese-crested-tern  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The chinese crested tern (Thalasseus bernsteini) is a species in the family Laridae, order Charadriiformes. Recorded adults weigh 282 g to 284 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Critically Endangered.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 284 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | coastal |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Lifestyle | Aerial |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Critically Endangered (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Charadriiformes
- family: Laridae
- genus: Thalasseus
- species: *Thalasseus bernsteini* (Schlegel, 1863)

Synonyms: *Sterna bernsteini*, *Sterna zimmermanni*, *Thalasseus zimmermanni*

## Common questions

### How big is the chinese crested tern?

An adult chinese crested tern weighs 284 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

### Is the chinese crested tern endangered?

The chinese crested tern is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

### What kind of animal is the chinese crested tern?

The chinese crested tern (Thalasseus bernsteini) belongs to the family Laridae in the order Charadriiformes.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Chinese crested tern (Thalasseus bernsteini). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/chinese-crested-tern