About the Yellow-legged Gull
The yellow-legged gull or western yellow-legged gull is a large gull found in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, which has only recently achieved wide recognition as a distinct species. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of either the Caspian gull L. cachinnans, or more broadly as a subspecies of the herring gull L. argentatus. The genus name is from Latin Larus which appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird, and the species name honours the German zoologist Karl Michahelles.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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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).
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
What the Yellow-legged Gull sounds like
Where the Yellow-legged Gull lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Canada, United States, Finland, Luxembourg, Azerbaijan, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Jersey.
When to see the Yellow-legged Gull
Peak activity in May · a resident species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Western GullLarus occidentalisThe western gull is a large white-headed gull that lives on the west coast of North America and the Pacific Ocean.
Glaucous-winged GullLarus glaucescensThis gull is a large bird, being close in size and shape to the closely related Western gull (L. occidentalis).
California GullLarus californicusAdults are similar in appearance to the herring gull, but with brown eyes, yellow legs, and a more rounded head.
Side by side: Common Gull vs Yellow-legged Gull · California Gull vs Yellow-legged Gull · Glaucous-winged Gull vs Yellow-legged Gull
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