As part of the tern family, the sandwich tern shares a similar colouration consisting of a white-grey back with a white underside and a black cap on the head. The sandwich tern also has a black crest, black legs and a black bill with a yellow tip. They have short tail feathers.

The sandwich tern is a summer visitor to the coast of Ireland from March to September. Small numbers of sandwich tern winter in Galway Bay and Strangford Lough.

The sandwich tern is one of the largest tern species. They feed on fish such as whiting and sandeel, which they prey upon by diving into the water.

Similar to other tern species, the sandwich tern breeds in colonies and then nests on islands, shingle beaches and sand dunes. On of the largest colonies in Ireland, consisting of several hundred breeding pairs, can be found in County Wexford on Lady’s Island.

The sandwich tern is named after Sandwich Bay in Kent, England.