Royal Tern, Sterna maximus

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Photographs taken on Longboat Key, Florida, January 2020.

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Photography taken in the greater Puerto Adolfo Lopez Mateos area, Baja California Sur, March 2017.

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Photograph taken on Marco Island, Florida, January 2019.

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Photographs taken in the greater Zihuatanejo area, Guerrero, March 2018. Photographs courtesy of Ron Woheau, Zihuatanejo.

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Bird photographed in the greater Progreso area, Yucatán, March 2021. Photograph and identification courtesy of Marina Sutormina, Stockholm, Sweden.

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Photograph taken in the coastal area of Yavaros, Sonora,

January 2019. Photograph and identification courtesy of David F Smith, Alamos, Sonora.

Royal Tern, Sterna maximus. Photographs taken within a residential community in the greater Fort Lauderdale area, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, November 2019. Photographs and identifications courtesy of Faith Hubsch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The Royal Tern, Sterna maximus, a is a member of the Laridae Family of Gulls, Terns and Skimmers. In Mexico has a limited range along coastal waters of the Atlantic being found only around the Yucatán Peninsula but found along all coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean. From a conservation perspective the Royal Tern is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. Found along beaches, mud flats and sandbars in coastal waters throughout its range. They primarily consume fish supplementing their diet with crabs and shrimp.