---
title: "South American Tern"
description: "Sterna hirundinacea — Uccelli. The South American tern (Sterna hirundinacea) is a species of tern found in coastal regions of southern South America, including the Falkland Islands, ranging north to Peru (Pacific coast) and Brazil (Atlantic coast)."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/it/animal/south-american-tern
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# South American Tern

> Sterna hirundinacea — Uccelli. The South American tern (Sterna hirundinacea) is a species of tern found in coastal regions of southern South America, including the Falkland Islands, ranging north to Peru (Pacific coast) and Brazil (Atlantic coast).

- Scientific name: *Sterna hirundinacea*
- Category: `birds` (Uccelli)
- Habitats: `sea` (Mare e costa)
- iNaturalist observations: 2474
- Wikidata: [Q1260013](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1260013)
- iNaturalist taxon: [4454](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/4454)

## Names

- en: South American Tern
- de: Falklandseeschwalbe
- es: Gaviotín sudamericano
- fr: Sterne hirundinacée
- nl: Zuid-Amerikaanse visdief
- pt: Trinta-réis-de-bico-vermelho
- pl: Rybitwa jaskółcza

## Countries with the most observations

AR (697), CL (608), BR (310), UY (111), FK (30), PE (27), EC (5)

## Summary

The South American tern (Sterna hirundinacea) is a species of tern found in coastal regions of southern South America, including the Falkland Islands, ranging north to Peru (Pacific coast) and Brazil (Atlantic coast). It is generally the most common tern in its range. The smaller, highly migratory common tern closely resembles it. The specific epithet refers to the "swallow-like" forked tail feathering.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_American_tern

## Photo

![South American Tern](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/south-american-tern/medium.jpg)

Photo: Hugo Hulsberg · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/337363505

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/south-american-tern?lang=it` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).