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Bird name:

Glaucous Gull

Larus hyperboreus

Order

CHARADRIIFORMES

Family

Skuas, Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae)

Code 4

GLGU

Code 6

LARHYP

ITIS

176808

Breeding Location:

Lakes, Seashore, rocky or sandy, Rocky places, Rivers, Rocky cliffs

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Colonial

Breeding Population:

Egg Color:

Light brown or olive buff with dark brown blotches

Number of Eggs:

2 - 3

Incubation Days:

27 - 28

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Lined with seaweed, moss, feathers, and debris.

Migration:

Migratory

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General

Glaucous Gull: Large, white gull with pale gray back. Eyes are yellow. Bill is yellow with red spot on lower mandible. Wings are white-edged and white tipped. Legs and feet are pink. Sexes are similar. Winter adult has brown wash on head and neck.

Range and Habitat

Glaucous Gull: Breeds in Alaska and northern Canada. Spends winters along the coast south to California (rarely) and Virginia; rarely found in the Great Lakes and the Gulf coast. Preferred habitats include shores of lakes, rivers, and coast, as well as refuse dumps and sewage outflows.

Breeding and Nesting

Glaucous Gull: Two to three light brown or olive eggs with dark brown blotches are laid in a cliff nest lined with moss and grass. Incubation ranges from 27 to 28 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Glaucous Gull: Feeds mostly on eggs and young of other birds during summer; also eats fish, invertebrates, refuse, insects, and berries. Forages by wading, plunge diving, and stealing food from other seabirds.

Vocalization

Glaucous Gull: Usually silent, but while flying sometimes makes a prattling-like quack; also has various shrieking cries.

Similar Species

Glaucous Gull: Glaucous-winged Gull is smaller, has gray marks on primaries, and a slight red ring around dark eyes. Iceland Gull is smaller and has pale gray primaries with translucent white tips.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Lower mandible

The lower part of the bill.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America