Species

Ring-billed gull

Larus delawarensis

The gull of car parks and inland lakes, with a black ring around its yellow bill.

Photo Rhododendrites (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab)

Urban wildlife

At a glance

Size: About 43 to 54 cm long
Weight: About 400 to 700 g
Habitat: Lakes, rivers, car parks, landfills, fields and coasts
Diet: Fish, insects, earthworms, grain and food scraps
In Georgia: An abundant winter visitor, statewide
Voice: A high, mewing "kee-yow"
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: Pale grey back; black wingtips with white spots; yellow legs; yellow bill with a black ring near the tip
Told apart from: Herring gull, which is larger with pink legs and no ring on the bill
Told apart from: Laughing gull, which has a darker back and black legs
Where to look: Shopping-centre car parks, reservoirs and fast-food restaurants in winter

Behaviour

Ring-billed gulls are highly adaptable, following ploughs, picking through landfills and gathering in car parks. They return to the same wintering spots year after year.

Why they matter

Ring-billed gulls were scarce in the early 1900s but have boomed alongside people. They are the gull most Georgians see inland, and they clean up food waste and eat many insects in fields.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A shallow scrape on islands in large lakes, in colonies
Eggs — Usually three
Incubation — About 20 to 31 days
Chicks — Fed by both parents
Flight — At about five weeks
Lifespan — Wild birds over twenty years are recorded

Living around people

Feeding gulls in car parks draws large flocks and teaches them to snatch food.
Six-pack rings and fishing line tangle gulls; cutting rings and binning line helps.

Misconceptions

Gulls inland are lost from the sea. Ring-billed gulls winter inland by choice.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	Abundant inland and on the coast	Wintering	Migrating north	Last birds leave; a few young birds stay	Nesting on northern lakes	Nesting	Chicks	Young flying	Migration begins	Arriving	Wintering	Wintering

Where it lives

Recorded in 80 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

Mexico

If you found one

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