Bird name:

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Larus fuscusOrder: CHARADRIIFORMES Family: Skuas, Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae)

Codes: Common Name: LBBG Scientific Name: LARFUS ITIS Taxonomic No.: 176821

Lesser Black-backed Gull - The breeding adult Lesser Black-backed Gull has a dark gray back and wings. The head, neck, and underparts are white. The bill is yellow with a red spot near tip on the lower mandible.

Lesser Black-backed Gull 1st Winter - The first winter Lesser Black-backed Gull is mostly mottled brown and has brown streaked breast, black terminal band on tail, gray-streaked head and neck, black bill, and pink legs.

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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.

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Lesser Black-backed Gull: Medium-sized gull with dark gray back and wings. Head, neck and underparts are white. Rump and tail are white. Bill is yellow with red spot near tip. The wings have dark tips with white spots; legs and feet are yellow. Eyes are yellow with red orbital rings.

● Song: "yuk-yuk-yuk-yuckle-yuckle", "hiyak, hiyak, hiyak"

● Foraging & Feeding: Lesser Black-backed Gull: Feeds on worms, insects, bird eggs and nestlings, fish, shellfish, small mammals, and carrion; also scavenges at landfills and agricultural lands.

● Breeding & nesting: Lesser Black-backed Gull: Three brown or olive to blue green eggs marked with dark brown are laid in a ground nest lined with dry lichens, vegetation, and feathers. Incubation ranges from 24 to 27 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Lesser Black-backed Gull: Herring Gull is paler, larger with shorter legs and thicker bill, and lacks brown mottling on neck and head.

Flight Pattern

Direct flight with strong steady wing beats.

Lesser Black-backed Gull Breeding Adult Body Illustration

● Range & Habitat: Lesser Black-backed Gull: Eurasian species. Breeds in northern Europe; uncommon but increasingly regular visitor to eastern North America; rarer inland and in the west. Preferred habitats include coastal cliffs, moorlands, and dunes. Spends winters on coasts, estuaries, inland lakes, reservoirs, and rubbish tips.

^BreedingMonogamous, Colonial

^PopulationRare to uncommon

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight27.2 Ounces

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