Skip to main content Skip to navigation
Home
Today's Show: Rhinoceros Hornbill
Rhinocerous Hornbill
Listen In
  • Today's Show
  • Listen
    • Daily Shows
    • Threatened
    • Grouse
    • BirdNote Presents
    • How to Listen
  • Explore
    • Field Notes
    • Sights & Sounds
    • Birdwatching
    • Resources for Educators
  • How to Help Birds
    • At Home
    • In Your Community
    • Success Stories
  • About
    • The BirdNote Story
    • The Team
    • Partners
    • For Radio Stations
    • Funding
    • Contact Us
    • FAQs
    • Support BirdNote
  • Donate

Why Arctic Terns Have Short Beaks

The better to keep warm!
Subscribe to the Podcast
Download
  • Share This:
  • Share to Facebook
  • Share to Twitter
  • Share to Email
Arctic Tern
© Gregg Thompson

The bill and legs of Arctic Terns are shorter than those of Common Terns. Because Arctic Terns breed in the Arctic and winter in the Antarctic, they are subject to much colder weather than are Common Terns. Birds' bills and legs lose heat, because they're not covered by feathers. Birds in cold climates have short bills and legs, lessening their exposure.

Tell a friend about the BirdNote podcast!

  • Full Transcript
  • Credits

BirdNote ®

Why Arctic Terns Have Short Beaks

Written by Dennis Paulson

This is BirdNote!

[Common Tern calls]

Environmental conditions shape birds’ bodies, even birds belonging to the same family. For example, consider the terns. [Common Tern calls] The Common Terns you’re hearing have long, pointed bills they use to catch small fish. They migrate along both coasts and through the interior in spring and fall, on their way between nesting grounds in Canada and their winter home in the tropics. By migrating, they move from one warm and productive environment to another. [Common Tern calls]

Their close relative, Arctic Terns, look much alike, but both their bills and legs are shorter. [Arctic Tern calls] Both species feed in exactly the same way, so why would the Arctic Tern’s bill and legs be shorter?

Well, because Arctic Terns breed in the Arctic and winter in Antarctica [Arctic Tern calls], they’re subject to much more severe weather than are Common Terns. Because birds’ bills and legs are not covered by feathers, they lose heat. It just makes sense then for birds in cold climates to have short bills and legs – and less exposure to the cold.

You can compare photos of the Arctic Tern and the Common Tern — and learn more about both — on our website, BirdNote.org. And if you know someone who can’t catch BirdNote at the time it’s aired, let them know they can get BirdNote online or as a podcast, any time day or night. I’m Michael Stein.

###

Bird audio provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Common Tern recorded by C.A. Sutherland and R.S. Little. Arctic Tern recorded by G.A. Keller.
Ambient waves recorded by J. Kessler, Kessler Productions
Producer: John Kessler
Executive Producer: Chris Peterson
© 2016 Tune In to Nature.org     January 2013/2018/2021   Narrator:  Michael Stein

ID# 012507ARTE2KPLU   ARTECOTE-01b   

Dennis Paulson
Writer
Michael Stein
Narrator
Gregg Thompson
Photographer
Support More Shows Like This
TagsArctic science Antarctica

Related Resources

Sign up for the BirdNote podcast!Arctic Tern – More at the Audubon Guide to North American BirdsCommon Tern – More at the Audubon Guide to North American BirdsArctic Tern — More at All About BirdsCommon Tern — More at All About Birds

More About These Birds

Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea)

Sterna paradisaea

Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)

Sterna hirundo

Sights & Sounds

Related Field Notes

March 1, 2020

Nature's Goggles - Nictitating Membranes

By BirdNote Gallery
December 18, 2017

What does it take to record the world’s birds?

By Gerrit Vyn

Birds connect us with the joy and wonder of nature. By telling vivid, sound-rich stories about birds and the challenges they face, BirdNote inspires listeners to care about the natural world – and take steps to protect it.

Support BirdNote

  • Daily Shows
  • Field Notes
  • BirdNote Presents
  • Sights & Sounds
  • About BirdNote
  • Contact BirdNote
Sign up for our newsletter!
  • BirdNote on Facebook
  • BirdNote on Twitter
  • BirdNote on Instagram

Copyright 2020. All rights reserved.

  • Privacy Policy