Birds › Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers
American Herring Gull
Larus smithsonianus
28 photos
Study shows up to four per card, from different observers, so you learn the species rather than one picture. Heart the good ones and swap any you do not like.
Photos you add are credited to you, and you keep the copyright.
Sounds
- Recording by Doug Hynes (XC1036311). CC-BY-SA · Source
Easily confused with
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
Western GullLarus occidentalis
European Herring GullLarus argentatus
Great Black-backed GullLarus marinus
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
California GullLarus californicus
Iceland GullLarus glaucoides
Laughing GullLeucophaeus atricilla
Study checks a spoken answer against these, and tells you which one you named.
Where it is recorded
| North Carolina | 90,832 |
|---|---|
| British Columbia | 80,986 |
| United States | 62,711 |
| Indiana | 56,630 |
| Washington | 48,950 |
| Colorado | 42,606 |
| Oregon | 37,081 |
| Georgia | 33,384 |
| Missouri | 30,451 |
| Canada | 29,400 |
Counts show where people looked, not only where it lives.
Traits
Behavioral
- CarnivoreEats other animals or animal-derived prey as a major part of its diet.BIRDBASE avian traits database
Group and habits
- Tree nestingListed by a harvested source as nesting in trees.BIRDBASE avian traits database
- Rock nestingListed by a harvested source as nesting on rocks or cliffs.BIRDBASE avian traits database
- Shrub nestingListed by a harvested source as nesting in shrubs.BIRDBASE avian traits database
- Ground nestingListed by a harvested source as nesting on the ground.BIRDBASE avian traits database
- Bamboo nestingListed by a harvested source as nesting in bamboo.BIRDBASE avian traits database
- Scrape nestingListed by a harvested source as nesting in scrapes.BIRDBASE avian traits database
Classification
| Kingdom | Animals · Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Chordates · Chordata |
| Class | Birds · Aves |
| Order | Shorebirds and Allies · Charadriiformes |
| Family | Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers · Laridae |
| Genus | Large White-headed Gulls · Larus |
Study it in a deck
- Birds of British Columbia, Canada
- Birds of Centre Wellington, Ontario, Canada
- Birds of Ontario
- Birds of Oshawa, Ontario, Canada
- Birds of Pennsylvania (Alkas)
- Birds of Pennsylvania, United States
- Birds of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
- Birds of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Or build your own from the species near you.
Sources
- Names, taxonomy and observation counts: www.inaturalist.org
- Photos and recordings: the creator and source are on each one.
- Traits: BIRDBASE avian traits database (CC BY 4.0)
- How much to rely on each source
Remember the name next time.
Practise American Herring Gull with real photos from different observers and its recordings. Say the name out loud, and it comes back just before you would forget it.