Tern sea terns have light grey or white body plumage as adults, with a black cap to the head. The legs and bill are various combinations of red, orange, yellow, or black depending on species. The pale plumage is conspicuous from a distance at sea, and may attract other birds to a good feeding area for these fish-eating species. When seen against the sky, the white underparts also help to hide the hunting bird from its intended prey. The Inca tern has mainly dark plumage, and three species that mainly eat insects, the black tern, white-winged tern, and black-bellied tern, have
Sandwich tern Sandwich tern The Sandwich tern ("Thalasseus sandvicensis") is a tern in the family Laridae. It is very closely related to the lesser crested tern ("T. bengalensis"), Chinese crested tern ("T. bernsteini"), Cabot's tern ("T. acuflavidus"), and elegant tern ("T. elegans") and has been known to interbreed with the lesser crested. The Sandwich tern is a medium-large tern with grey upperparts, white underparts, a yellow-tipped black bill and a shaggy black crest which becomes less extensive in winter with a white crown. Young birds bear grey and brown scalloped plumage on their backs and wings. It is a vocal bird. It