Gulls and Terns

Order: CHARADRIIFORMES - Family: LARIDAE

100 Species currently existing - 29 in region + 5 vagrants + 2 rare

Gulls and terns are two distinct groups of seabirds known for their coastal habitats, distinctive appearances, and behaviors. Here are some key points about gulls and terns: Read in Spanish

GULLS

Physical Characteristics: Gulls are medium to large-sized birds with webbed feet, long wings, and strong bills. They have a distinctive angular shape in flight and can be identified by their white and gray plumage, though some species have more colorful markings. Gulls also have broad heads and keen eyesight.

Habitat: Gulls are highly adaptable and are found in a wide range of coastal and inland habitats, including beaches, estuaries, lakes, and urban areas. They are often seen scavenging for food near human settlements, as well as foraging along shorelines and in open waters.

Diet: Gulls are opportunistic feeders and have a varied diet that includes fish, invertebrates, small mammals, carrion, and human food scraps. They are known for their bold behavior in stealing food from other birds or even humans.

Behavior: Gulls are social birds that are often seen in large flocks, especially during the non-breeding season. They are vocal and have a wide range of calls for communication. Gulls also exhibit complex behaviors such as aerial displays, territorial defense, and courtship rituals.

TERNS

Physical Characteristics: Terns are smaller than gulls and are characterized by their slender bodies, pointed wings, forked tails, and sharp, pointed bills. They have graceful flight patterns and are superb aerial hunters. Terns typically have a more streamlined and elegant appearance compared to gulls.

Habitat: Terns are primarily found in coastal areas, nesting on beaches, islands, and coastal marshes. They are well adapted for diving into the water to catch fish, their primary source of food.

Diet: Terns are piscivorous birds, which means they mainly feed on fish. They are known for their spectacular plunge-diving behavior, where they hover over the water and then dive headfirst to catch fish with precision. Terns also eat crustaceans and other small marine creatures.

Behavior: Terns are known for their acrobatic flight displays, with some species engaging in elaborate aerial courtship rituals. They are highly vocal birds, with various calls used for communication, navigation, and social interactions. Terns are also migratory birds, undertaking long-distance journeys between their breeding and wintering grounds.

Gulls and terns are both important components of coastal ecosystems, each with unique adaptations and behaviors that allow them to thrive in marine environments. While gulls are known for their opportunistic feeding habits and adaptability, terns are celebrated for their graceful flight and precision fishing skills. Both groups play crucial roles in maintaining the balance of coastal food webs and ecosystems.

Brown Noddy

Anous stolidus
Spanish Name: Tiñosa Parda

Size: 15 in | 38 cm
Habitat: Pelagian waters
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Luke Seitz eBird S27904475 Macaulay Library ML 34482701

Black Noddy

Anous minutus
Spanish Name: Tiñosa Negra

Size: 14 in | 36 cm
Habitat: a variety of marine environments, including tropical and subtropical waters around coral reefs, atolls, and rocky islands.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © slowmotiongli iStock/Getty Images Plus

Common White Tern (White Tern)

Gigys alba
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Niveo

Size: 13 in | 33 cm
Habitat: tropical and subtropical oceanic regions.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Pascale Gueret iStock/Getty Images Plus

Black Skimmer

Rynchops niger
Spanish Name: Picotijera Americano

Size: 18 in | 46 cm
Habitat: Sandy beaches, tidal flats, sandbars, and shallow coastal lagoons.
Height: <1000 m

Photo: © Wildnerdpix iStock/Getty Images Plus

Little Gull

Hydrocoloeus minutus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Enana
Vagrant

Size: 11.5 in | 29 cm
Habitat: Freshwater and brackish coastal areas such as lakes, rivers, marshes, and estuaries.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Cameron Eckert eBird S7259518 Macaulay Library ML 81497591

Swallow-tailed Gull

Creagrus furcatus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Rabihorcada
Rear Resident

Size: 21 in | 53 cm
Habitat: Freshwater and brackish coastal areas such as lakes, rivers, marshes, and estuaries.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Peter Kaestner eBird S35664265 Macaulay Library ML 57117331

Sabine's Gull

Xema sabini
Spanish Name: Gaviota de Sabine
Rare boreal passage migrant (Sept - late May)

Size: 13.5 in | 34 cm
Habitat: Highly pelagic, spending much of their time far out at sea, particularly over continental shelves.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Daniel López-Velasco | Ornis Birding Expeditions eBird S67965517 Macaulay Library ML 237435121

Black-headed Gull

Chroicocephalus ridibundus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Cabecinegra

Size: 16 in | 41 cm
Habitat: Wetlands, such as lakes, rivers, ponds, marshes, and estuaries.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © OKU iStock/Getty Images Plus

Andean Gull

Chroicocephalus serranus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Andina
Rarely coastal

Size: 19 in | 48cm
Habitat: Near lakes, marshes, and other wetland areas in the Andes Mountains, often at high elevations.
Height: 3000 - 5000 m

Photo: © Blake Matheson eBird S40224954 Macaulay Library ML 74820331

Gray-headed Gull (Gray-hooded Gull)

Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Capucho Gris

Size: 17 in | 43 cm
Habitat: Estuaries, beaches, marshes, lakes, and rivers. They can also be found in urban areas, agricultural fields, and even at high elevations near freshwater lakes.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Christoph Moning eBird S16732047 Macaulay Library ML 65681601

Gray Gull

Leucophaeus modestus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Gris
Rare austral migrant

Size: 18 in | 46 cm
Habitat: Coastal areas, including rocky shorelines, beaches, estuaries, and ports.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Oscar Gutierrez Zozulia iStock/Getty Images Plus

Franklin's Gull

Leucophaeus pipixcan
Spanish Name: Gaviota de Franklin
Common boreal migrant

Size: 14.5 in | 37 cm
Habitat:
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Akchamczuk iStock/Getty Images Plus

Laughing Gull

Leucophaeus atricilla
Spanish Name: Gaviota Reidora
Common boreal migrant

Size: 16.5 in | 42 cm
Habitat: Coastal regions, including beaches, estuaries, marshes, and lagoons.
Height: <2600 m

Photo: © Dorian Anderson eBird S55259417 Macaulay Library ML 154520481

Belcher's Gull

Larus belcheri
Spanish Name: Gaviota Sureña

Size: 22 in | 56 cm
Habitat: Rocky coastlines, islands, and coastal cliffs where they nest and roost.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Chris Wood eBird S40486650 Macaulay Library ML 77582251

Ring-billed Gull

Larus delawarensis
Spanish Name: Gaviota de Delaware
Rare boreal Migrant

Size: 18 in | 46 cm
Habitat: Coastlines, lakes, rivers, and urban areas.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Nancy Strohm iStock/Getty Images Plus

Kelp Gull

Larus dominicanus
Spanish Name: Gavión Cocinero
Very rare visitor

Size: 24 in | 61 cm
Habitat: Rocky cliffs, sandy beaches, and coastal areas.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Cristian Valderas Vargas iStock/Getty Images Plus

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Larus fuscus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Sombría

Size: 21 in | 53 cm
Habitat: Coastal areas, wetlands, and urban environments.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Sander Meertins iStock/Getty Images Plus

Arctic Herring Gull ( Herring Gull)

Larus smithsonianus
Spanish Name: Gaviota Argéntea del Ártico

Size: 25 in | 64 cm
Habitat: Coastlines, lakes, and rivers.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © paulfjs iStock/Getty Images Plus

Great Black-backed Gull

Larus marinus
Spanish Name: Gavion
Vagrant

Size: 30 in | 76 cm
Habitat: Estuarine habitats, where rivers meet the sea.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © David O'Brien iStock/Getty Images Plus

Sooty Tern

Onychoprion fuscatus
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Oscuro

Size: 16 in | 41 cm
Habitat: Highly adapted for life at sea.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © valsmith56 iStock/Getty Images Plus

Bridled Tern

Onychoprion anaethetus
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Embridado

Size: 15 in | 38cm
Habitat: Tropical and subtropical regions around the world.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © Samantha Haebich iStock/Getty Images Plus

Least Tern

Sternula antillarum
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Enano

Size: 9 in | 23 cm
Habitat: Coasts and inland waterways. Sandy beaches, barrier islands, salt flats, and occasionally breed inland along rivers and lakes.
Height: Sea level

Photo: © passion4nature iStock/ Getty Images Plus

Yellow-billed Tern

Sternula superciliaris
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Fluvial

Size: 10 in | 25 cm
Habitat: Rivers, freshwater lakes but not in coasts.
Height: <1000 m

Photo: © Dgwildlife iStock/Getty Images Plus

Large-billed Tern

Phaetusa simplex
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Picudo

Size: 16 in | 41 cm
Habitat: In large muddy rivers in lowlands.
Height: <1000 m rarely 3500 m

Photo: © drferry iStock/Getty Images Plus

Common Gull-billed Tern

Gelochelidon nilotica
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Blanco

Size: 14 in | 36 cm
Habitat: Salt marshes, estuaries, beaches, and coastal lagoons.
Height: Sea level

Caspian Tern

Hydroprogne caspia
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Piquirrojo

Size: 21 in | 53 cm
Habitat: A variety of aquatic habitats, including coastlines, estuaries, marshes, lagoons, and large inland bodies of water.
Height: Sea level

Inca Tern

Larosterna inca
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Inca

Size: 17 in | 43 cm
Habitat: Along rocky coastal cliffs and islands, where they nest in colonies.
Height: Sea level

Black Tern

Chlidonias niger
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Negro

Size: 10 in | 25 cm
Habitat: Near marshes, lakes, ponds, and slow-moving rivers during the breeding season.
Height: Sea level

Roseate Tern

Sterna dougallii
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Rosado
Vagrant

Size: 13 in | 33 cm
Habitat: Coastal regions around the world, typically breeding on remote islands, sandy beaches, and coastal marshes.
Height: Sea level

South American Tern

Sterna hirundinacea
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Sudamericano

Size: 13 in | 33 cm
Habitat: Coastal areas, including rocky shores, sandy beaches, and estuaries.
Height: Sea level

Common Tern

Sterna hirundo
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Común

Size: 12 in | 30 cm
Habitat: Along coastlines, including sandy beaches, estuaries, marshes, and offshore islands. They also breed in inland areas near suitable freshwater habitats like lakes and rivers.
Height: Sea level

Arctic Tern

Sterna paradisaea
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Ártico

Size: 12 in | 30 cm
Habitat: Arctic regions, nesting on coastal tundra or rocky islands.
Height: Sea level

Forster's Tern

Sterna forsteri
Spanish Name: Gaviotín de Forster
Vagrant

Size: 13 in | 33 cm
Habitat: coastal areas, salt marshes, freshwater marshes, lakes, rivers, and estuaries.
Height: Sea level

Elegant Tern

Thalasseus elegans
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Elegante

Size: 17 in | 43 cm
Habitat: Along the Pacific coast of North and South America, nesting on coastal islands, sandbars, and beaches. They prefer open coastal areas, estuaries, and bays for feeding and breeding.
Height: Sea level

Sandwich Tern

Thalasseus sandvicensis
Spanish Name: Gaviotín de Cabot

Size: 15 in | 38 cm
Habitat: Coastal lagoons, estuaries, and salt marshes. During the non-breeding season, they migrate to warmer waters in southern regions.
Height: Sea level

Royal Tern

Thalasseus maximus
Spanish Name: Gaviotín Real

Size: 21 in | 51 cm
Habitat:
Height: Sea level