Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)
- Appearance: white head and belly, light grey backs, black wingtips, white on wing undersides, beige legs, yellow beak with red spot on underside near tip, head and neck streaked tan during winter and black ring appears on beak
- Male is larger than female, same coloration in plumage
- Length: 22 to 26 inches (about 2 feet)
- Wingspan: 54 to 58 inches (about 4.5 feet)
- Status: one of the most common gulls on the East Coast
- However, populations are in steep decline – shrunk by 83% from 1966-2016
- Landfills and waste from coastal fishing boats allowed populations to expand along coast after nearly being hunted to extinction in 1880s for feathers and eggs
- Habitat loss, overfishing, pollution, and deliberate control measures to keep them out of recreational/industrial spaces are responsible for their decline
- However, populations are in steep decline – shrunk by 83% from 1966-2016
- Habitat
- Settle along open coast, large lakes and rivers, salt marshes, forests, landfills, fish-processing plants, picnic grounds
- Roost in agricultural and athletic fields, parking lots, and atop buildings
- On beaches, most commonly seen foraging on tidal zone or above open ocean
- Found all year from Newfoundland, Canada to Virginia, U.S.
- Seasonal ranges extend along East and West coasts and southern mainland of United States, as well as much of Canada, where it is the most common gull
- Also found in Europe
- On the west coast of Americas, the only population that remains year-round is in Alaska
- Dumping of waste from human activities has allowed for range expansion
- Settle along open coast, large lakes and rivers, salt marshes, forests, landfills, fish-processing plants, picnic grounds
- Diet
- Prey on fish and shellfish and their eggs, smaller seabirds and their young, worms, insects, scavengers of fish, carrion, and human waste
- While herring gulls prefer drinking freshwater, they have special glands over their eyes that allow them to excrete salt from seawater to avoid dehydration
- Preferred diet is shellfish – herring gulls fly to high altitudes and drop their prey above hard surfaces such as rocks, docks, or pavement to crack their shells
- Herring gulls steal food from other gulls and seabirds
- In times of food shortages, male herring gulls may even eat chicks from other birds in their colony
- Herring gulls often become sick or even die after ingesting plastics
- One herring gull was spotted throwing bread into a fish pond (did not eat bread), then attacking the goldfish as they came to the surface to eat the bread – ability to use tools
- Migration
- Migratory populations breed across Canadian territories, then overwinter along North Carolina to Gulf Coast, West Coast of United States, coastal Mexico, may also roost along major rivers in Eastern U.S. (ex. Mississippi)
- There is a large range for departure and travel times as a result of the herring gull’s large range: in spring migration can begin from March to May, in fall migration can begin from August to October
- Birds in ranges farther north migrate farther south, thus taking longer migration paths
- Young herring gulls are more migratory than those that have matured
- Average flight speed is about 20-25 mph, top speed is about 35-40 mph
- Migratory populations breed across Canadian territories, then overwinter along North Carolina to Gulf Coast, West Coast of United States, coastal Mexico, may also roost along major rivers in Eastern U.S. (ex. Mississippi)
- Nesting
- Breed in large, mixed species colonies on barrier beaches, isolated islands, and marshes
- Sometimes colonies can have hundreds of shorebirds
- Herring gulls return to the same nesting site each year, unless it is destroyed or they are driven away by humans, and mate with the same partners
- Both males and females dig up to 4 depressions in sand as potential nest sites
- After choosing the best site, they line nest with vegetation, feathers, pebbles, plastic, rope, or anything else they can find
- Average brood is 1-3 dull green eggs with dark splotching
- Largest, heaviest eggs and most successful hatch rate of any North American gull
- If all eggs are lost, another brood may be laid
- Breed in large, mixed species colonies on barrier beaches, isolated islands, and marshes
- “Young of the Year”
First Winter: Third Winter: Adult Winter:
Herring gulls take about 4 years to grow adult plumage
-
- Chicks begin to explore after one day, parents care for them for about 3 months
- Fledglings learn to fly after about six weeks, branch off from colony at end of season
- Average lifespan is 15-20 years, but the oldest captured was about 30 years old
