The glaucous gull (Larus hyperboreus) is a large gull, the second-largest gull in the world. The genus name is from Latin , which appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird. The specific name is Latin for "northern" from the Ancient Greek Huperboreoi people from the far north "Glaucous" is from Latin and denotes the grey colour of the gull. An older English name for this species is burgomaster.

Distribution

This gull breeds in Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and winters south to shores of the Holarctic. It is migratory, wintering from in the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans as far south as the British Isles and northernmost states of the United States, also on the Great Lakes. A few birds sometimes reach the southern USA and northern Mexico.

Description

thumb|left|Adult plumage

thumb|left|Immature plumage

This is a large and powerful gull, second-largest of all gull species and very pale in all plumage, with no black on either the wings or the tail. Adults are pale grey above, with a thick, yellow bill. Juveniles are very pale grey with a pink and black bill. This species is considerably larger, bulkier, and thicker-billed than the similar Iceland gull, and can sometimes equal the size of the great black-backed gull, the oft-titled largest gull species. In some areas, glaucous gulls are about the same weight as great black-backed gulls or even heavier, and their maximum weight is greater. These gulls range from in length and can span , with some specimens possibly attaining , across the wings.

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Ecology

This species of seagull breeds colonially or singly on coasts and cliffs, making a lined nest on the ground or cliff. Normally, two to four light brown eggs with dark brown splotches are laid.

These are omnivores like most Larus gulls, and they eat fish, insects, molluscs, starfish, offal, scraps, eggs, small birds, small mammals, and carrion, as well as seeds, berries, and grains.

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File:Grote burgemeester eerste winter-4961707.webm|Glaucous gull at De Cocksdorp, Netherlands

File:Larus hyperboreus-USFWS.jpg|

File:Larus hyperboreus MWNH 0347.JPG|Egg, collection Museum Wiesbaden

File:Glaucous Gull flying with Great Black-backed Gulls.jpg|In flight with great black-backed gulls, Ottawa, Ontario

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References

  • Glaucous gull , Alaska Seabird Information Series