Gulls
I love Gulls! I have always been interested and fascinated with theses gorgeous birds. This year, 2026, I deceided to go see and photograph as many Gull species as I can. So far, I have already seen and photogragh twelve different species of Gull. I cannot believe it, there's still a lot more to see and discover. I have the rest of the year to tick my list.
Black-headed Gull, summer plumage
Bonaparte's Gull
Adult Caspian Gull
First Winter Caspian Gull, ringed in Germany, Ring: X5F9
Common Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Herring Gull
Iceland Gull
Kittiwake
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Little Gull
Mediterranean Gull
Ross's Gull
Gulls, informally called Seagulls, are seabirds of the subfamily Larinae.
An older name for gulls is mew; this still exists in certain regional English dialects and is cognate with German Möwe, Danish måge, Swedish mås, Dutch meeuw, Norwegian måke/måse, and French mouette; both 'gull' and 'mew' are ultimately onomatopoeic in origin, derived from the calls of the birds.
Gulls are usually grey and white, often with black markings on the head or wings, strong bills, and all have webbed feet. They normally have harsh mewing, wailing or squawking calls. Most Gulls are ground-nesting piscivores or carnivores which take live food or scavenge opportunistically, particularly the larger species in the genus Larus. Live food includes crustaceans, molluscs, fish, and for the larger species, birds and mammals. Gulls' jaws can unhinge to allow them to consume large prey. They are typically coastal or inshore (or even inland) species, rarely venturing far out to sea, except the Kittiwakes and Sabine's Gull. The large species take up to four years to attain full adult plumage, but two years is typical for small Gulls. Large white-headed Gulls are usually long-lived birds, with a maximum age of 49 years recorded for the European Herring Gull.
Gulls nest in large, often densely packed, noisy colonies. They lay two or three speckled eggs in nests composed of vegetation. The young are precocial, born with dark mottled down and mobile upon hatching. Gulls are resourceful, inquisitive, and intelligent, the larger species in particular, demonstrating complex methods of communication and a highly developed social structure. For example, many Gull colonies display mobbing behaviour, attacking and harassing predators and other intruders. Certain species, such as the Herring Gull, have exhibited tool-use behaviour, for example using pieces of bread as bait with which to catch goldfish. Many species of Gulls have learned to coexist successfully with humans and thrive in human habitats. Others rely on Kleptoparasitism to get their food. Gulls have been observed preying on live whales, landing on the whale as it surfaces and pecking out pieces of flesh.
An older name for gulls is mew; this still exists in certain regional English dialects and is cognate with German Möwe, Danish måge, Swedish mås, Dutch meeuw, Norwegian måke/måse, and French mouette; both 'gull' and 'mew' are ultimately onomatopoeic in origin, derived from the calls of the birds.
Gulls are usually grey and white, often with black markings on the head or wings, strong bills, and all have webbed feet. They normally have harsh mewing, wailing or squawking calls. Most Gulls are ground-nesting piscivores or carnivores which take live food or scavenge opportunistically, particularly the larger species in the genus Larus. Live food includes crustaceans, molluscs, fish, and for the larger species, birds and mammals. Gulls' jaws can unhinge to allow them to consume large prey. They are typically coastal or inshore (or even inland) species, rarely venturing far out to sea, except the Kittiwakes and Sabine's Gull. The large species take up to four years to attain full adult plumage, but two years is typical for small Gulls. Large white-headed Gulls are usually long-lived birds, with a maximum age of 49 years recorded for the European Herring Gull.
Gulls nest in large, often densely packed, noisy colonies. They lay two or three speckled eggs in nests composed of vegetation. The young are precocial, born with dark mottled down and mobile upon hatching. Gulls are resourceful, inquisitive, and intelligent, the larger species in particular, demonstrating complex methods of communication and a highly developed social structure. For example, many Gull colonies display mobbing behaviour, attacking and harassing predators and other intruders. Certain species, such as the Herring Gull, have exhibited tool-use behaviour, for example using pieces of bread as bait with which to catch goldfish. Many species of Gulls have learned to coexist successfully with humans and thrive in human habitats. Others rely on Kleptoparasitism to get their food. Gulls have been observed preying on live whales, landing on the whale as it surfaces and pecking out pieces of flesh.
Common Breeding and Resident Gulls in the UK:
1. Herring Gull: Large size (54–60 cm), pale grey back, pink legs, and yellow bill with a red spot.
2. Black-headed Gull: Smaller (35 cm) with a chocolate-brown summer head, red bill, and loud squawk.
3. Common Gull: Medium size (40–42 cm) with a dark grey back, greenish-yellow bill, and rounded head.
4. Lesser Black-backed Gull: Dark grey-to-black back, yellow legs, and migratory habits.
5. Great Black-backed Gull: Very large (size of a small dog) with a powerful heavy bill and dark mantle.
6. Black-legged Kittiwake: Small, purely marine gull with completely black wing-tips and dark legs.
Regular Visitors and Rarer Breeders in the UK:
1. Mediterranean Gull: Scarlet bill and striking black hood in summer; growing UK breeding numbers.
2. Yellow-legged Gull: Large southern visitor with bright yellow legs and a heavy yellow bill.
3. Little Gull: The world's smallest gull species, seen on migration and occasionally attempting to breed.
4. Iceland Gull and Glaucous Gull: Large, white-winged visitors from the Arctic that arrive during winter.
1. Herring Gull: Large size (54–60 cm), pale grey back, pink legs, and yellow bill with a red spot.
2. Black-headed Gull: Smaller (35 cm) with a chocolate-brown summer head, red bill, and loud squawk.
3. Common Gull: Medium size (40–42 cm) with a dark grey back, greenish-yellow bill, and rounded head.
4. Lesser Black-backed Gull: Dark grey-to-black back, yellow legs, and migratory habits.
5. Great Black-backed Gull: Very large (size of a small dog) with a powerful heavy bill and dark mantle.
6. Black-legged Kittiwake: Small, purely marine gull with completely black wing-tips and dark legs.
Regular Visitors and Rarer Breeders in the UK:
1. Mediterranean Gull: Scarlet bill and striking black hood in summer; growing UK breeding numbers.
2. Yellow-legged Gull: Large southern visitor with bright yellow legs and a heavy yellow bill.
3. Little Gull: The world's smallest gull species, seen on migration and occasionally attempting to breed.
4. Iceland Gull and Glaucous Gull: Large, white-winged visitors from the Arctic that arrive during winter.
54 Gull species, listed in the taxonomic sequence used by the Avilist:
1. Swallow-tailed Gull Creagrus furcatus
2. Little Gull Hydrocoloeus minutus
3. Ross's Gull Rhodostethia rosea
4. Red-legged Kittiwake Rissa brevirostris
5. Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla
6. Sabine's Gull Xema sabini
7. Ivory Gull Pagophila eburnea
8. Saunders's Gull Saundersilarus saundersi
9. Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei
10. Bonaparte's Gull Chroicocephalus philadelphia
11. Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus
12. Brown-headed Gull Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus
13. Hartlaub's Gull Chroicocephalus hartlaubii
14. Grey-headed Gull Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus
15. Brown-hooded Gull Chroicocephalus maculipennis
16. Andean Gull Chroicocephalus serranus
17. Black-billed Gull Chroicocephalus bulleri
18. Silver Gull Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae
The Huahine Gull (Chroicocephalus utunui), also known as the Society Islands Gull, is an extinct bird, a species of gull of which subfossil bones were found at the Fa'ahia archeological site on Huahine, in the Society Islands of French Polynesia.
20. Dolphin Gull Leucophaeus scoresbii
21. Grey Gull Leucophaeus modestus
22. Laughing Gull Leucophaeus atricilla
23. Franklin's Gull Leucophaeus pipixcan
24. Lava Gull Leucophaeus fuliginosus
25. Pallas's Gull (or Great black-headed gull) Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus
26. Relict Gull Ichthyaetus relictus
27. Audouin's Gull Ichthyaetus audouinii
28. Mediterranean Gull Ichthyaetus melanocephalus
29. White-eyed Gull Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus
30. Sooty Gull Ichthyaetus hemprichii
31. Pacific Gull Larus pacificus
32. Belcher's Gull Larus belcheri
33. Black-tailed Gull Larus crassirostris
34. Olrog's Gull Larus atlanticus
35. Heermann's Gull Larus heermanni
36. Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis
37. Short-billed Gull Larus brachyrhynchus
38. Common Gull Larus canus
39. Yellow-footed Gull Larus livens
40. Western Gull Larus occidentalis
41. Caspian Gull Larus cachinnans
42. Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus (or "southern black-backed gull" or "karoro" in New Zealand)
44. Vega Gull Larus vegae
45. Mongolian Gull Larus mongolicus
46. European Herring Gull Larus argentatus
47. Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis
48. Armenian Gull Larus armenicus
49. Great black-backed Gull Larus marinus
50. Glaucous Gull Larus hyperboreus
51. Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus
53. Glaucous-winged Gull Larus glaucescens
54. Slaty-backed Gull Larus schistisagus
55. Iceland Gull Larus glaucoides
1. Swallow-tailed Gull Creagrus furcatus
2. Little Gull Hydrocoloeus minutus
3. Ross's Gull Rhodostethia rosea
4. Red-legged Kittiwake Rissa brevirostris
5. Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla
6. Sabine's Gull Xema sabini
7. Ivory Gull Pagophila eburnea
8. Saunders's Gull Saundersilarus saundersi
9. Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei
10. Bonaparte's Gull Chroicocephalus philadelphia
11. Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus
12. Brown-headed Gull Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus
13. Hartlaub's Gull Chroicocephalus hartlaubii
14. Grey-headed Gull Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus
15. Brown-hooded Gull Chroicocephalus maculipennis
16. Andean Gull Chroicocephalus serranus
17. Black-billed Gull Chroicocephalus bulleri
18. Silver Gull Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae
- Red-billed Gull Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae scopulinus
The Huahine Gull (Chroicocephalus utunui), also known as the Society Islands Gull, is an extinct bird, a species of gull of which subfossil bones were found at the Fa'ahia archeological site on Huahine, in the Society Islands of French Polynesia.
20. Dolphin Gull Leucophaeus scoresbii
21. Grey Gull Leucophaeus modestus
22. Laughing Gull Leucophaeus atricilla
23. Franklin's Gull Leucophaeus pipixcan
24. Lava Gull Leucophaeus fuliginosus
25. Pallas's Gull (or Great black-headed gull) Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus
26. Relict Gull Ichthyaetus relictus
27. Audouin's Gull Ichthyaetus audouinii
28. Mediterranean Gull Ichthyaetus melanocephalus
29. White-eyed Gull Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus
30. Sooty Gull Ichthyaetus hemprichii
31. Pacific Gull Larus pacificus
32. Belcher's Gull Larus belcheri
33. Black-tailed Gull Larus crassirostris
34. Olrog's Gull Larus atlanticus
35. Heermann's Gull Larus heermanni
36. Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis
37. Short-billed Gull Larus brachyrhynchus
38. Common Gull Larus canus
39. Yellow-footed Gull Larus livens
40. Western Gull Larus occidentalis
41. Caspian Gull Larus cachinnans
42. Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus (or "southern black-backed gull" or "karoro" in New Zealand)
- Cape Gull Larus dominicanus vetula
44. Vega Gull Larus vegae
45. Mongolian Gull Larus mongolicus
46. European Herring Gull Larus argentatus
47. Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis
48. Armenian Gull Larus armenicus
49. Great black-backed Gull Larus marinus
50. Glaucous Gull Larus hyperboreus
51. Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus
- Heuglin's Gull Larus fuscus heuglini
53. Glaucous-winged Gull Larus glaucescens
54. Slaty-backed Gull Larus schistisagus
55. Iceland Gull Larus glaucoides
- Kumlien's Gull Larus glaucoides kumlieni
- Thayer's Gull Larus glaucoides thayeri