Laughing gull

Laughing gull
Laughing gull in flight
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Aves
Order:Charadriiformes
Family:Laridae
Genus:Leucophaeus
Species: L. atricilla
Binomial name
Leucophaeus atricilla
Synonyms

Larus atricilla Linnaeus, 1758

The laughing gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) is a medium-sized gull of North and South America. The genus name Leucophaeus is from Ancient Greek leukos, "white", and phaios, "dusky". The specific atricilla is from Latin ater, "black", and cilla, "tail". Linnaeus appears to have misread his note atricapilla (black-haired), which would have been much more appropriate for this black-headed, but white-tailed, bird.[2]

It breeds on the Atlantic coast of North America, the Caribbean, and northern South America. Northernmost populations migrate farther south in winter, and this species occurs as a rare vagrant to western Europe. (An influx into north-west Europe occurred in late October 2005, when at least 18, possibly as many as 35, individuals were seen on one day in the UK alone.) The laughing gull's English name is derived from its raucous kee-agh call, which sounds like a high-pitched laugh "ha... ha... ha...".

This species is easy to identify. It is 36–41 cm (14–16 in) long with a 98–110 cm (39–43 in) wingspan. The summer adult's body is white apart from the dark grey back and wings and black head. Its wings are much darker grey than all other gulls of similar size except the smaller Franklin's gull, and they have black tips without the white crescent shown by Franklin's. The beak is long and red. The black hood is mostly lost in winter.

The two subspecies are:[3]

Laughing gulls take three years to reach adult plumage. Immature birds are always darker than most similar-sized gulls other than Franklin's. First-year birds are greyer below and have paler heads than first-year Franklin's, and second-years can be distinguished by the wing pattern and structure.

Laughing gulls breed in coastal marshes and ponds in large colonies. The large nest, made largely from grasses, is constructed on the ground. The three or four greenish eggs are incubated for about three weeks. These are omnivores like most gulls, and they scavenge and seek suitable small prey.

Like most other members of the genus Leucophaeus, the laughing gull was long placed in the genus Larus. The present placement in Leucophaeus follows the American Ornithologists' Union.[4][5]

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2012). "Larus atricilla". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. ↑ Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 59, 224. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  3. ↑ "Laughing Gull (Larus atricilla)".
  4. ↑ "Check-list of North American Birds". North American Classification Committee. American Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  5. ↑ Remsen, J. V. Jr.; C. D. Cadena; A. Jaramillo; M. Nores; J. F. Pacheco; M. B. Robbins; T. S. Schulenberg; F. G. Stiles; D. F. Stot; K. J. Zimmer. "A classification of the bird species of South America". South American Classification Committee. American Ornithologists' Union. Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
  • Laughing Gull - Larus atricilla - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
  • Laughing Gull Species Account - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
  • Field Guide on Flickr
  • Laughing Gull Bird Sound at Florida Museum of Natural History
  • "Laughing Gull media". Internet Bird Collection.
  • Laughing Gull photo gallery at VIREO (Drexel University)
  • Interactive range map of Leucophaeus atricilla at IUCN Red List maps
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.