A very small, delicate, three-year gull. Rounded head and short comparatively thin bill create a pigeon-like appearance. Alternate Adult has clean white head and underparts, dark gray back, yellow legs, black wingtips, white tail, and very thin all-yellow bill. Basic Adult has diffuse brown smudges and streaks on head and neck, and faint black mark toward tip of yellow bill. Second-cycle birds have gray legs, well-defined black ring on bill, and variable black tail band, with occasional black marks on tertials. First-cycle birds are mostly brown with pale gray back, dark brown flight feathers, thickly barred undertail coverts, dusky pink legs, and pink bill with black tip. Juveniles are entirely chocolate-brown, with all-dark bill, barred undertail coverts, unpatterned brown underparts, and brown back with light feather edging. In flight, note small amount of black on wingtips with significant white spots. Sexes are similar; male is slightly larger. European race, rare on Atlantic Coast, shows many plumage traits of Ring-billed Gull. Siberian race, rare in Alaska, is like European, but bulkier with larger bill.

Length: 40 (cm) Wingspan: 109 (cm)

Voice:

High-pitched nasal calls and mewing notes.

Habitat:

Breeds on inland lakes; winters in coastal areas, wet fields, and reservoirs.

Behavior:

Typically gregarious; forms large flocks, often with other gulls, including Ring-billed. Sometimes breeds colonially. Nest is a mat or cup of wet vegetation on the ground.

Feeding:

Picks food from water, sometimes hovering over surface, or walks along ground in search of prey. Eats a wide variety of fish, insects, small animals, and human waste.