CreatureData

Large-billed tern

Phaetusa simplex (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)

LCLeast Concernbirds

The large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex) is a species in the family Laridae, order Charadriiformes. Recorded adults weigh 235 g to 239.2 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex)
Photo: Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the large-billed tern

Weight
235 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
riverinesrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
2.4src for Young per litter or clutch
Lifestyle
Aerialsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Partialsrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the large-billed tern live?

Not recorded

What is the large-billed tern?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex) is a species of tern in the family Laridae. It is placed the monotypic genus Phaetusa. It is found in most of South America (east of the Andes and north of the Pampas). It has occurred as a vagrant in Aruba, Bermuda, Cuba, Panama and the United States. Its natural habitats are rivers and freshwater lakes.

From the Wikipedia article “Large-billed tern” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Large-billed_tern&oldid=1359859905), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the large-billed tern endangered?

The large-billed tern is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.

How is the large-billed tern classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderCharadriiformes
  5. familyLaridae
  6. genusPhaetusa
  7. SpeciesPhaetusa simplex (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)

Synonyms Phaetusa simplex chloropoda, Phaetusa simplex simplex, Sterna chloropoda, Sterna magnirostris, Sterna simplex

Other names and names in other languages (42)
  • خرشنة طويل المنقارArabic
  • Голямоклюна рибаркаBulgarian
  • Skrav beg brasBreton
  • xatrac becgròsCatalan
  • rybák žlutozobýCzech
  • môr-wennol bigfawrWelsh
  • Tyknæbbet TerneDanish
  • GroßschnabelseeschwalbeGerman
  • Großschnabel-SeeschwalbeGerman
  • dikbeka ŝternoEsperanto
  • Charrán de RíoSpanish
  • AtíSpanish
  • Charrán picudoSpanish
  • Gaviotín de pico grandeSpanish
  • suurnokk-tiirEstonian
  • پرستوی دریایی نوکدرشتPersian
  • isonokkatiiraFinnish
  • Sterne à gros becFrench
  • שחפית גדולת-מקורHebrew
  • žutokljuna čigraCroatian
  • vastagcsőrű csérHungarian
  • Sterna beccogrossoItalian
  • オオハシアジサシJapanese
  • didžiasnapė žuvėdraLithuanian
  • grootbeksternDutch
  • GrootsnavelsternDutch
  • TjukknebbterneNorwegian Nynorsk
  • tykknebbterneNorwegian
  • Meuchi Pik GrandiPapiamento
  • Stèrnchi Pico GrandiPapiamento
  • rybitwa amazońskaPolish
  • trinta-réis-grandePortuguese
  • gaivina-de-bico-grandePortuguese
  • Большеклювая крачкаRussian
  • rybár krátkochvostýSlovak
  • Krupnokljuna čigraSerbian
  • tjocknäbbad tärnaSwedish
  • sydamerikansk flodtärnaSwedish
  • Kalın Gagalı SumruTurkish
  • крячок великодзьобийUkrainian
  • 巨嘴鷗Chinese
  • 巨嘴燕鸥Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the large-billed tern

Other species in the same family Laridae.

CompareLarge-billed tern vs Black-headed gullLarge-billed tern vs European herring gullLarge-billed tern vs Common gullLarge-billed tern vs Common tern

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the large-billed tern?

An adult large-billed tern weighs 235 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the large-billed tern endangered?

The large-billed tern is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

What kind of animal is the large-billed tern?

The large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex) belongs to the family Laridae in the order Charadriiformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/large-billed-tern

MLA

“Large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/large-billed-tern.

BibTeX
@misc{large_billed_tern_2026,
  title = {Large-billed tern (Phaetusa simplex)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/large-billed-tern},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}