• Helix (Sterna) Albers, 1850 accepted as Elona H. Adams & A. Adams, 1855
• Sterna Albers, 1850 accepted as Elona H. Adams & A. Adams, 1855
• Sterna Linnaeus, 1758
• Sterna acuflavida Cabot, 1847 accepted as Thalasseus sandvicensis acuflavidus (Cabot, 1847)
• Sterna acuflavida acuflavida Cabot, 1847
• Sterna acuflavida eurygnatha Saunders, 1876 accepted as Thalasseus sandvicensis acuflavidus (Cabot, 1847)
• Sterna acuticauda Gray, 1832
• Sterna albifrons Pallas, 1764 accepted as Sternula albifrons (Pallas, 1764)
• Sterna albifrons sinensis Pallas, 1764 accepted as Sternula albifrons sinensis (Gmelin, 1789)
• Sterna albostriata (Gray, 1845) accepted as Chlidonias albostriatus (Gray, 1845)
• Sterna aleutica Baird, 1869 accepted as Onychoprion aleuticus Baird, 1869
• Sterna anaethetus Scopoli, 1786 accepted as Onychoprion anaethetus (Scopoli, 1786)
• Sterna anglica Montagu, 1813 accepted as Gelochelidon nilotica (Gmelin, 1789)
• Sterna antillarum (Lesson, 1847) accepted as Sternula antillarum Lesson, 1847
• Sterna aurantia Gray, 1831
• Sterna balaenarum (Strickland, 1852) accepted as Sternula balaenarum (Strickland, 1852)
• Sterna bengalensis Lesson, 1831
• Sterna bengalensis bengalensis Lesson, 1831
• Sterna bengalensis emigrata Neumann, 1934
• Sterna bengalensis torresii (Gould, 1843)
• Sterna bergii Lichtenstein, 1823
• Sterna bergii bergii (Lichtenstein, 1823)
• Sterna bergii cristatus Stephens, 1826
• Sterna bergii enigmus (Clancey, 1979)
• Sterna bergii gwendolenae Mathews, 1912
• Sterna bergii thalassinus Stresemann, 1914
• Sterna bergii velox Cretzschmar, 1827
• Sterna bernsteini Schlegel, 1863
• Sterna camtschatica Pallas, 1811 accepted as Onychoprion aleuticus Baird, 1869
• Sterna cantiaca accepted as Thalasseus sandvicensis (Latham, 1787) accepted as Sterna sandvicensis Latham, 1787
• Sterna caspia Pallas, 1770 accepted as Hydroprogne caspia (Pallas, 1770)
• Sterna dougallii Montagu, 1813
• Sterna dougallii bangsi Mathews, 1912
• Sterna elegans Gambel, 1849
• Sterna eurygnatha Saunders, 1876 accepted as Thalasseus sandvicensis acuflavidus (Cabot, 1847)
• Sterna fluviatilis Naumann, 1839 accepted as Sterna hirundo Linnaeus, 1758
• Sterna forsteri Nuttall, 1834
• Sterna fuscata Linnaeus, 1766 accepted as Onychoprion fuscatus Linnaeus, 1766
• Sterna galericulata (uncertain > unassessed)
• Sterna hirundinacea Lesson, 1831
• Sterna hirundo Linnaeus, 1758
• Sterna hirundo longipennis von Nordmann, 1835
• Sterna hirundo minussensis Sushkin, 1925
• Sterna hybrida Pallas, 1811 accepted as Chlidonias hybrida (Pallas, 1811)
• Sterna leucoptera Temminck, 1815 accepted as Chlidonias leucopterus (Temminck, 1815)
• Sterna lorata Philippi & Landbeck, 1861 accepted as Sternula lorata Philippi & Landbeck, 1861
• Sterna lunata Peale, 1848
• Sterna magna (uncertain > unassessed)
• Sterna maxima Boddaert, 1783
• Sterna maxima albididorsalis Hartert, 1921
• Sterna maxima maxima Boddaert, 1783
• Sterna melanogaster Temminck, 1827 accepted as Sterna acuticauda Gray, 1832
• Sterna minuta (uncertain)
• Sterna nereis (Gould, 1843) accepted as Sternula nereis (Gould, 1843)
• Sterna niger Linnaeus, 1758 accepted as Chlidonias niger (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Sterna nigra Linnaeus, 1758 accepted as Chlidonias niger (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Sterna nilotica Gmelin, 1789 accepted as Gelochelidon nilotica (Gmelin, 1789)
• Sterna paradisaea Pontoppidan, 1763
• Sterna philadelphia Ord, 1815 accepted as Larus philadelphia (Ord, 1815)
• Sterna pileata Scopoli, 1786 accepted as Anous stolidus pileatus (Scopoli, 1786)
• Sterna repressa Hartert, 1916
• Sterna sandvicensis Latham, 1787
• Sterna saundersi Hume, 1877 accepted as Sternula saundersi (Hume, 1877)
• Sterna sinensis Gmelin, 1789 accepted as Sternula albifrons sinensis (Gmelin, 1789)
• Sterna stolida Linnaeus, 1758 accepted as Anous stolidus (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Sterna striata Gmelin, 1789
• Sterna sumatrana Raffles, 1822
• Sterna sumatrana sumatrana Raffles, 1822
• Sterna superciliaris Vieillot, 1819 accepted as Sternula superciliaris (Vieillot, 1819)
• Sterna tenuirostris Temminck, 1823 accepted as Anous tenuirostris (Temminck, 1823)
• Sterna trudeaui Audubon, 1838
• Sterna tschegrava Ödmann, 1782 accepted as Hydroprogne caspia (Pallas, 1770)
• Sterna virgata Cabanis, 1875
• Sterna vittata Gmelin, 1789
• Sterna vittata bethunei Travers, 1896
• Sternachus d'Orbigny, 1847 accepted as Apteronotus Lacepède, 1800
• Sternachus virescens Valenciennes, 1836 accepted as Eigenmannia virescens (Valenciennes, 1836)
• Sternacorhamphus accepted as Sternarchorhamphus Eigenmann, 1905
• Sternacorhamphus hahni Meinken, 1937 accepted as Rhamphichthys hahni (Meinken, 1937)
• Sternarchella Eigenmann, 1905
• Sternarchella calhamazon Lundberg, Coz Fernandes, Campos da Paz & Sullivan, 2013
• Sternarchella curvioperculata Godoy, 1968 accepted as Apteronotus curvioperculata (Godoy, 1968)
• Sternarchella duccis (Lundberg, Cox Fernandes & Albert, 1996)
• Sternarchella orinoco Mago-Leccia, 1994 accepted as Sternarchella sima Starks, 1913
• Sternarchella orthos Mago-Leccia, 1994
• Sternarchella patriciae Evans, Crampton & Albert, 2017
• Sternarchella raptor (Lundberg, Cox Fernandes & Albert, 1996)
• Sternarchella rex Evans, Crampton & Albert, 2017
• Sternarchella schotti (Steindachner, 1868)
• Sternarchella sima Starks, 1913
• Sternarchella terminalis (Eigenmann & Allen, 1942) accepted as Sternarchella schotti (Steindachner, 1868)
• Sternarchogiton Eigenmann, 1905
• Sternarchogiton cuchillejo Schultz, 1949 accepted as Apteronotus cuchillejo (Schultz, 1949)
• Sternarchogiton labiatus de Santana & Crampton, 2007
• Sternarchogiton nattereri (Steindachner, 1868)
• Sternarchogiton porcinum Eigenmann & Allen, 1942
• Sternarchogiton preto de Santana & Crampton, 2007
• Sternarchogiton zuanoni de Santana & Vari, 2010
• Sternarchorhamphus Eigenmann, 1905
• Sternarchorhamphus hahni Meinken, 1937 accepted as Rhamphichthys hahni (Meinken, 1937)