Common Tern vs Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

Sterna hirundo compared with Andigena hypoglauca

Key Differences

• Common Tern is Endangered while Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Tern	Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Charadriiformes (Charadriiformes)	Piciformes (Piciformes)
Family	Laridae	Ramphastidae
Genus	Sterna	Andigena
Species	Sterna hirundo	Andigena hypoglauca

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Tern and Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan share a common ancestor at the Class level: Aves. (Birds)

Conservation Status

Common Tern

EN — Endangered

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Tern	Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Tern

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, flooded grasslands and savannas, and montane grasslands and shrublands, among 9 distinct biome types spanning the Neotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (7 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, and Norway. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Common Tern

Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) is classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. At high risk of extinction in the wild, with significant population decline and ongoing threats to survival.

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan

Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan (Andigena hypoglauca) is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List. Close to qualifying as threatened, with populations that may become vulnerable without conservation action.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇨🇴 Colombia 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇳🇴 Norway