American Herring Gull or Lesser Black-Backed Gull?

Here's how to tell the difference

American Herring Gull

Larus smithsonianus

Also known as: Smithsonian Gull

How to recognise a American herring gull?

General appearance

The American herring gull is a large gull species, displaying a distinctive silver-gray back and wings with black wingtips adorned with white spots. It features a white head, neck, and underparts, with a robust yellow bill marked by a red spot on the lower mandible. Its legs are generally pink, contributing to its recognizable silhouette.

Male vs female

There is minimal sexual dimorphism in American herring gulls. Males are slightly larger compared to females, although both sexes share similar plumage, making it challenging to differentiate them based solely on appearance without measuring body size.

Juvenile

Juvenile herring gulls differ significantly from adults, exhibiting mottled brown plumage with heavily streaked heads and bodies. They have dark bills and eyes, and their legs may appear more on the brownish side. Over the course of four years, they progressively attain adult plumage, with gradual changes in coloration.

Size

20.9 - 25.6 in/21.2 - 58.2 oz

Habitat

Primary habitat

The American Herring Gull typically occupies coastal shorelines, beaches, and refuse dumps. Large open spaces near water are commonly used as winter hangouts.

Additional range

Their range covers the north Atlantic Coast, the Great Lakes, and the southern Alaskan coast. Elsewhere, mainly nonbreeding adults and immature gulls are found.

Range Map

What do American herring gulls like to eat?

Natural diet

American Herring Gulls are versatile and opportunistic feeders with diverse natural diets. They prey on marine invertebrates, including mussels, crabs, sea urchins, and crayfish along rocky shores. On mudflats, they consume worms, small clams, and mussels. In open water, they follow large predators and fishing boats to scavenge small fish, squid, and zooplankton. On land, especially in newly plowed fields, they eat earthworms and other invertebrates. Additionally, they are known to prey on insects, smaller seabirds, and even the adults, young, and eggs of other gulls. Gulls also scavenge on fish, carrion, and human trash. Individual gulls often specialize in a specific type of food.

Bird feeders

American Herring Gulls typically do not visit bird feeders as their natural food sources are varied and abundant in their native habitats. Their diet primarily consists of marine invertebrates and food obtained through scavenging, which aligns more with natural foraging behaviors than with visiting human-provided feeders.

What does a American herring gull sound like?

The American Herring Gull, often just called a seagull, has a variety of vocalizations. Its typical call is a harsh, raucous "ha-ha-ha-haaaah" sound. They often emit long, repeated cries when flying and squawking calls when threatened. In the mating season, the gulls perform "long-call" displays which are composed of guttural sounds followed by high-pitched notes. Herring Gulls don't have traditional "songs" like some birds, but their call repertoire is still diverse and complex.

Call

Audio by Paul Marvin

/ CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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Lesser Black-Backed Gull

Larus fuscus

How to recognise a lesser black-backed gull?

General appearance

The Lesser Black-backed Gull is about the size of a Mallard or Herring Gull, with a length of 23 inches (58 cm). It features distinctly darker grey back and wings, with a coloration of black, brown, red, white, and yellow. Its legs are yellow and wings are long, pointed, narrow and tapered. The tail appears rounded, short, and square-tipped.

Male vs female

The Lesser Black-backed Gull does not present significant sexual dimorphism, meaning males and females look similar. Both exhibit dark gray back and wings with yellow legs. Hence, distinguishing between males and females relies mainly on behavioral observations rather than physical differences.

Juvenile

Juvenile Lesser Black-backed Gulls closely resemble young Herring Gulls until their darker back color starts to develop. This transformation phase represents the most noticeable change from their earlier youthful appearance. Therefore, the identification of juveniles, before the changes in their back color, is often challenging due to their strong resemblance with the Herring Gulls' young ones.

Size

20.1 - 24.0 in/19.4 - 42.3 oz

Habitat

Primary habitat

The lesser black-backed gull mainly occupies coastal areas, especially beaches, bays, and estuaries, including coastal islands.

Additional range

Other unexpected environments it inhabits are garbage dumps, fishing harbors, and inland lakes, particularly around the Great Lakes and other northeastern locations. These settings offer ample food sources.

Range Map

What do lesser black-backed gulls like to eat?

Natural diet

The lesser black-backed gull has an omnivorous diet that includes a wide variety of natural food sources. These include fish, insects, mollusks, crustaceans, marine worms, small birds, nestlings, eggs, and rodents. The gull also consumes plant-based sources such as berries, seeds, and seaweed. Additionally, it is known to scavenge from garbage dumps.

Bird feeders

Though the lesser black-backed gull primarily relies on natural food sources, it may occasionally visit bird feeders if they are nearby. Common food items it might consume at feeders include breadcrumbs, suet, and various types of seeds. However, it is not a frequent visitor to bird feeders.

What does a lesser black-backed gull sound like?

The Lesser Black-backed Gull produces a strident 'kyow' which is deeper than the Herring Gull's call. The call pattern is flat and undulating, giving it a raucous sound, characteristic of this species. This provides a distinctive audio signature, assisting in identification even when the bird is not visually spotted. Its sounds represent a varying harmony of intense and penetrating calls, making it a truly unique species in terms of vocalization.

Call

Audio by Joost van Bruggen

/ CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

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American Herring Gull

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Lesser Black-Backed Gull

American Herring Gull

Larus smithsonianus

Also known as: Smithsonian Gull

General appearance

Male vs female

Juvenile

Size

20.9 - 25.6 in/21.2 - 58.2 oz

There's more to learn about American Herring Gull

View full details

Lesser Black-Backed Gull

Larus fuscus

General appearance

Male vs female

Juvenile

Size

20.1 - 24.0 in/19.4 - 42.3 oz

There's more to learn about Lesser Black-Backed Gull

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How to tell the American Herring Gull from the Lesser Black-Backed Gull

Visual differences

The American Herring Gull is larger, featuring a silver-gray back and wings with black wingtips, and pink legs. Its robust yellow bill is marked by a red spot on the lower mandible. In contrast, the Lesser Black-backed Gull has a darker gray back, yellow legs, and a pointed, tapered wing shape. Both species have similar-sized bodies, but the Herring Gull generally appears bulkier at 21-26 inches in length compared to the Lesser Black-backed Gull's 20-24 inches. Juveniles are challenging to differentiate until plumage matures.

Key differences and behavior

The American Herring Gull (Larus smithsonianus) and Lesser Black-Backed Gull (Larus fuscus) differ notably in behavior and habitat preferences. Herring Gulls are opportunistic scavengers found along coastlines and refuse dumps, with a broader North American range. They consume a diverse diet, including marine invertebrates and human scraps, often specializing in specific food types. In contrast, Lesser Black-Backed Gulls, residing mainly in coastal areas, bays, and garbage dumps, exhibit leapfrog migration and occasionally visit bird feeders. Both species form colonies, but Lesser Black-Backed Gulls are not established nesters in North America. Herring Gulls build nests by natural structures using varied materials, while Lesser Black-Backed Gulls opt for ground, ledge, or roof sites. Both share incubation and chick-rearing duties, but Herring Gulls have a more prominent presence in North America.

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