Ten documented tern species in licensed photographs, comparing visible plumage and silhouettes. An editorial selection, not a ranking of beauty, size or rarity. Visuals are real Wikimedia Commons photographs, not AI-generated images. Narration is synthesized with Edge TTS. Photographs are resized and fitted to a portrait frame; derived images retain their source licenses. Common tern: MPF; CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2014-05-18_Sterna_hirundo%2C_Killingworth_Lake%2C_Northumberland_04.jpg Arctic tern: Charles J. Sharp; CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arctic_tern_%28Sterna_paradisaea%29_Flatey_3.jpg Roseate tern: MPF; CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2021-07-10_Sterna_dougallii%2C_St_Marys_Island%2C_Northumberland_15.jpg Sandwich tern: MPF; CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2021-07-10_Thalasseus_sandvicensis%2C_St_Marys_Island%2C_Northumberland_01.jpg Caspian tern: Mdf; CC BY-SA 3.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sterna-caspia-010.jpg Royal tern: EyeLoveBirds from Vancouver, Canada; CC BY-SA 2.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Tern_-_Thalasseus_maximus_%2833285813120%29.jpg Little tern: PetroKaterynych; CC BY 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%D0%9A%D1%80%D1%8F%D1%87%D0%BE%D0%BA_%D0%BC%D0%B0%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%B9.jpg Black tern: Andrej Chudý from Slovakia; CC BY-SA 2.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%C4%8Cor%C3%ADk_%C4%8Dierny_%28Chlidonias_niger%29_a_%284644831482%29.jpg White-winged tern: Nrg800; CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chlidonias_leucopterus_2023-04-08.jpg Inca tern: Cristóbal Alvarado Minic from Cagua, Venezuela; CC BY 2.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Larosterna_inca_-Lima%2C_Peru_-adult-8.jpg Adapted visuals and original contributions to this version are offered under CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/. Source photographs retain their stated licenses.