European Herring Gull: how to recognise it
A bird of Europe, Asia and North America. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Andrew Thompson · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Larus argentatus
- Family
- Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers
- Size
- About 60 cm
- Habitat
- Coasts, harbours, towns and landfills
- Found in
- Europe, Asia and North America
The key marks
Big gull with a pale silver-grey back, pink legs and a yellow bill with a red spot. Lesser Black-backed has a dark slate back and yellow legs; Caspian Gull has a smaller white head, a dark eye and longer, thinner bill.
Voice
The well-known loud laughing 'kyow-kyow-kyow'.
Good to know
The red spot on the bill is a target: chicks peck at it to make the parent bring up food.
Do not confuse with
Compare it with the Lesser Black-backed Gull. Look at the marks above one by one rather than the overall colour, and practise telling the two apart with real photos.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in coasts, harbours, towns and landfills. It is especially common in Norway, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Poland. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.