Gulls are seabirds in the family Laridae. They are most closely related to the terns (family Sternidae), and more distantly to the waders, auks and skimmers. Most gulls belong to the large genus Larus.

They are in general medium to large birds, typically grey or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have stout, longish bills and webbed feet.

Most gulls, particularly Larus species, are ground nesting carnivores, which will take live food or scavenge opportunistically. The live food often includes crabs and small fish. Apart from the kittiwakes, gulls are typically coastal or inland species, rarely venturing far out to sea. The large species take up to four years to attain full adult plumage, but two years is typical for small gulls. Gulls—the larger species in particular—are resourceful and highly-intelligent birds, demonstrating complex methods of communication and a highly-developed social structure. Certain species (e.g. the Herring Gull) have exhibited tool use behaviour. Many species of gull have learned to co-exist successfully with man and have thrived in human habitats.

Two terms are in common usage among gull enthusiasts for subgroupings of the gulls:

• Large white-headed gulls for the 16 Herring Gull-like species from Great Black-backed Gull to Lesser Black-backed Gull in the taxonomic list below
• White-winged gulls for the two Arctic-breeding species Iceland Gull and Glaucous Gull

Hybridisation between species of gull occurs quite frequently, although to varying degrees depending on the species involved (see Hybridisation in gulls). The taxonomy of the large white-headed gulls is particularly complicated.

In common usage, members of various gull species are often called sea gulls or seagulls. This name is used by laypeople to refer to a common local species or all gulls in general, and has no fixed taxonomic meaning.

Species list

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• American Herring Gull, Larus smithsonianus
• Andean Gull, Larus serranus
• Armenian Gull, Larus armenicus
• Audouin's Gull, Larus audouinii
• Belcher's Gull, Larus belcheri
• Black-billed Gull, Larus bulleri
• Black-headed Gull, Larus ridibundus
• Black-tailed Gull, Larus crassirostris
• Bonaparte's Gull, Larus philadelphia
• Brown-headed Gull, Larus brunnicephalus
• Brown-hooded Gull, Larus maculipennis
• California Gull, Larus californicus
• Caspian Gull, Larus cachinnans
• Common Gull or Mew Gull, Larus canus
• Dolphin Gull, Larus scoresbii
• East Siberian Herring Gull, Larus vegae
• Franklin's Gull, Larus pipixcan
• Glaucous Gull, Larus hyperboreus
• Glaucous-winged Gull, Larus glaucescens
• Great Black-backed Gull, Larus marinus
• Great Black-headed Gull, Larus ichthyaetus
• Grey Gull, Larus modestus
• Grey-headed Gull, Larus cirrocephalus
• Hartlaub's Gull, Larus hartlaubii
• Heermann's Gull, Larus heermanni
• Herring Gull, Larus argentatus
• Heuglin's Gull, Larus heuglini
• Iceland Gull, Larus glaucoides
• Ivory Gull, Pagophila eburnea
• Kelp Gull, Larus dominicanus
• Kittiwake or Black-legged Kittiwake, Rissa tridactyla
• Red-legged Kittiwake, Rissa brevirostris
• Laughing Gull, Larus atricilla
• Lava Gull, Larus fuliginosus
• Lesser Black-backed Gull, Larus fuscus
• Little Gull, Larus minutus
• Mediterranean Gull, Larus melanocephalus
• Olrog's Gull, Larus atlanticus
• Pacific Gull, Larus pacificus
• Red-billed Gull, Larus scopulinus
• Relict Gull, Larus relictus
• Ring-billed Gull, Larus delawarensis
• Ross's Gull, Rhodostethia rosea
• Sabine's Gull, Xema sabini
• Saunders' Gull, Larus saundersi
• Silver Gull, Larus novaehollandiae
• Slaty-backed Gull, Larus schistisagus
• Slender-billed Gull, Larus genei
• Sooty Gull, Larus hemprichii
• Swallow-tailed Gull, Creagrus furcatus
• Thayer's Gull, Larus thayeri
• Western Gull, Larus occidentalis
• White-eyed Gull, Larus leucophthalmus
• Yellow-footed Gull, Larus livens
• Yellow-legged Gull, Larus michahellis

The American Ornithologists' Union combines Sternidae, Stercorariidae, and Rhynchopidae as subfamilies in the family Laridae.

Gallery

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Image:Baby_gull.jpg|Baby gull at Trondheim, Norway. Image:Western Gull.jpg|Western Gull Image:Westgull.JPG|Western Gull At the Golden Gate Bridge San Francisco Image:herring.gull.northdevon.arp.750pix.jpg|Herring Gull on the North Devon coast, England Image:Seagull on sale pier.jpg|Silver Gull in Sale, Australia Image:Seagull04.jpg|Silver Gull at Sale, Australia Image:Seagull03.jpg|Silver Gull at Sale, Australia Image:Seagull_in_flight.JPG|Silver Gull at Rose Bay, Australia Image:Larus dominicanus.jpg|Kelp Gull in Chile Image:Mewa siodlata 2.jpg|Great Black-backed Gull, Stornoway, Hebrides Image:Red legged seagulls.jpg|Silver Gull Image:Seagull on sale pier02.jpg|Silver Gull at Sale, Australia Image:Seagull with bread in mouth.jpg|Silver Gull at Sale, Australia Image:Yellow legged seagull.jpg|Yellow legged seagull Image:Seagull_Ottawa_2005-09.jpg|Gull in Ottawa, Canada Image:Seagull.jpg|Herring Gull in Chile Image:Larus portrait.jpg|Yellow-legged Gull, Larus cachinnans michahellis, Elba Island, Italy Image:Heermann's Gull breeding adult.jpg|Heermann's Gull, breeding adult plumage at Monterey, California Image:Kelp_Gull_-_Gaviota_Dominicana_-_Larus_Dominicanus.jpg|Kelp Gull (Larus Dominicanus), taken at Con Con, Chile. Image:Seagull fremantle.jpg|Silver Gull in flight Fremantle, Western Australia.

Reference

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• Gulls of Europe, Asia and North America by Klaus Malling Olsen and Hans Larsson (2003) published by Helm ISBN 0-7136-7087-8

External links

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• Rudy's Gull-index: Pictures of several less well-known plumages of large gulls plus many links.
• The Norwegian Gull Page: Huge picture archive including all NW European species, as well as features from the Nearctic and SE Europe.
• Bird pictures - Gulls: Pictures and descriptions of large gulls from The Netherlands, France, Spain and Poland.
• Bird Hybrids Database: Search for specific laridae hybrids by entering gull species name in query box. Click on hybrid for references.
• Gull videos on the Internet Bird Collection

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