Black-fronted tern

Black-fronted tern
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Laridae
Genus: Chlidonias
Species:
C. albostriatus
Binomial name
Chlidonias albostriatus
(Gray, 1845)
Native range of the black-fronted tern on the map of New Zealand:
  Breeding range
  Wintering range
  Passage
Synonyms

Sterna albostriata

The black-fronted tern (Chlidonias albostriatus), sea martin, ploughboy, or tarapiroe (Māori), is a medium-small tern endemic to New Zealand. Black-fronted terns can be found in coastal habitats from the southern tip of the North Island to the eastern South Island as well as Stewart Island. Their breeding range is restricted to the South Island, where they will form breeding colonies on braided river islands.

The species is globally and nationally endangered, due to its small and declining national population. Black-fronted terns are vulnerable to a range of threats, including predation by introduced mammals, habitat loss (land use changes and weed encroachment), resource abstraction (gravel and water), human disturbance, and climate change.