African Register of Marine Species (AfReMaS)

AfReMaS taxon details

Sterna Linnaeus, 1758

AphiaID

137047 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:137047)

Classification

Status

accepted

Rank

Genus

Parent

Laridae Vigors, 1825

Direct children (18)

Ordering

Alphabetically
By status

Children Display

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Species Sterna dougallii Montagu, 1813
Species Sterna hirundo Linnaeus, 1758
Species Sterna paradisaea Pontoppidan, 1763
Species Sterna repressa Hartert, 1916
Species Sterna sumatrana Raffles, 1822
Species Sterna virgata Cabanis, 1875
Species Sterna vittata Gmelin, 1789
Species Sterna albifrons Pallas, 1764 accepted as Sternula albifrons (Pallas, 1764) (synonym)
Species Sterna anaethetus Scopoli, 1786 accepted as Onychoprion anaethetus (Scopoli, 1786) (synonym)
Species Sterna balaenarum (Strickland, 1852) accepted as Sternula balaenarum (Strickland, 1852) (synonym)
Species Sterna bengalensis Lesson, 1831 accepted as Thalasseus bengalensis (Lesson, 1831) (unaccepted > superseded combination)
Species Sterna bergii Lichtenstein, 1823 accepted as Thalasseus bergii (Lichtenstein, 1823) (unaccepted > superseded combination)
Species Sterna caspia Pallas, 1770 accepted as Hydroprogne caspia (Pallas, 1770) (synonym)
Species Sterna fuscata Linnaeus, 1766 accepted as Onychoprion fuscatus Linnaeus, 1766 (synonym)
Species Sterna maxima Boddaert, 1783 accepted as Thalasseus maximus (Boddaert, 1783) (unaccepted > superseded combination)
Species Sterna nilotica Gmelin, 1789 accepted as Gelochelidon nilotica (Gmelin, 1789)
Species Sterna sandvicensis Latham, 1787 accepted as Thalasseus sandvicensis (Latham, 1787) (unaccepted > superseded combination)
Species Sterna saundersi Hume, 1877 accepted as Sternula saundersi (Hume, 1877) (synonym)

Environment

marine, terrestrial

Original description

Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886 [details] Available for editors

Taxonomic citation

AfReMaS (2025). Sterna Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed at: https://www.marinespecies.org/afremas/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137047 on 2026-07-31

Regional species database citation

Odido, M.; Appeltans, W.; BelHassen, M.; Mussai, P.; Nsiangango, S.E.; Vandepitte, L.; Wambiji, N.; Zamouri, N. Jiddou, A.M. (Eds) (2026). African Register of Marine Species. Sterna Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed at: https://www.marinespecies.org/afremas/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=137047 on 2026-07-31

Taxonomic edit history

Date

action

2004-12-21 15:54:05Z

created

van der Land, Jacob

2005-03-29 08:12:19Z

changed

Claus, Simon

2020-06-25 07:35:06Z

changed

Decock, Wim

[taxonomic tree] [clear cache]

original description Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886 [details] Available for editors

basis of record van der Land, J. (2001). Tetrapoda, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 375-376 (look up in IMIS) [details]

additional source Urban, E. K.; Fry, C. H.; Keith, S. (1986). The Birds of Africa, Volume II. Academic Press, London. [details]

additional source Jonsson, L. (1993). Vogels van Europa, Noord-Afrika en het Midden-Oosten [Birds of Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East]. Tirion: Baarn, The Netherlands. ISBN 90-5210-187-6. 560 pp. (look up in IMIS) [details]

Present

Inaccurate

Introduced: alien

Containing type locality

Definitions

[show lower level...]

To Biological Information System for Marine Life (BISMaL)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Sterna)
To ITIS