Bird Guide

Common Gull vs Yellow-legged Gull

Common Gull (Larus canus)

Common Gull

Larus canus

Large413 gCoastal

Adult common gulls are 40–46 cm (16–18 in) long and a wingspan of 100–115 cm (39–45 in), noticeably smaller than the herring gull and slightly smaller than the ring-billed gull. It is further distinguished from the ring-billed gull by its shorter, more tapered bill, which is a more greenish shade of yellow and is unmarked during the breeding season. The body is grey above and white below. The legs are yellow in breeding season, becoming duller in the winter.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Sonothèque ADVL · CC0
Photo: Alexis Lours · CC BY 4.0
Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis)

Yellow-legged Gull

Larus michahellis

Large1.1 kgCoastal

The yellow-legged gull is a large gull, though the size does vary, with the smallest females being scarcely larger than a common gull and the largest males being roughly the size of a great black-backed gull. They range in length from 52 to 68 cm (20 to 27 in) in total length, from 120 to 155 cm (47 to 61 in) in wingspan and from 550 to 1,600 g (1.21 to 3.53 lb) in weight. Among standard measurements, the wing chord is 40.8 to 47.2 cm (16.1 to 18.6 in), the bill is 4.6 to 6 cm (1.8 to 2.4 in) and the tarsus is 5.6 to 7.5 cm (2.2 to 3.0 in).

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Giovanni Francesco Tartarelli · CC BY 4.0
Photo: Thorsten Hackbarth · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

And 19 more countries.

Learn this pair in BeakBrain

Photo and call practice, free in any browser.

Play BeakBrain

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Common Gull and Yellow-legged Gull.