Common Gull/Faoileán bán (Larus canus)
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Common Gull (Larus canus) is a medium-sized gull which breeds in northern Asia, northern Europe and northwestern North America. Adult common gulls are noticeably smaller than the herring gull and slightly smaller than the ring-billed gull. It is further distinguished from the ring-billed gull by its shorter, more tapered bill, which is a more greenish shade of yellow and is unmarked during the breeding season. The body is grey above and white below. The legs are greenish-yellow. In winter, the head is streaked grey and the bill often has a poorly defined blackish band near the tip, which is sometimes sufficiently obvious to cause confusion with ring-billed gull. They have black wingtips with large white "mirrors". Young birds have scaly black-brown upperparts and a neat wing pattern, and grey legs. They take two to three years to reach maturity. The call is a high-pitched "laughing" cry. (wikipedia)
This is an adult Common Gull in breeding plumage sitting on its nest in a tree! They breed on the coast and inland in the west of Ireland, from Dingle to Malin Head, with most colonies in Co. Galway, Co. Mayo and Co. Donegal. Inland it can breed on islands in lakes where it has declined. The species is declining in Ireland as a breeding bird, like those of inland breeding Black-headed Gulls, which have been attributed to predation by American Mink, reaching previously safe nesting areas (per Birdwatch Ireland). This photograph was taken in Reine, in the Lofoten Islands in Norway. The nest was in a tree in the front garden of a house there!
Common Gull/Faoileán bán (Larus canus)
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Common Gull (Larus canus) is a medium-sized gull which breeds in northern Asia, northern Europe and northwestern North America. Adult common gulls are noticeably smaller than the herring gull and slightly smaller than the ring-billed gull. It is further distinguished from the ring-billed gull by its shorter, more tapered bill, which is a more greenish shade of yellow and is unmarked during the breeding season. The body is grey above and white below. The legs are greenish-yellow. In winter, the head is streaked grey and the bill often has a poorly defined blackish band near the tip, which is sometimes sufficiently obvious to cause confusion with ring-billed gull. They have black wingtips with large white "mirrors". Young birds have scaly black-brown upperparts and a neat wing pattern, and grey legs. They take two to three years to reach maturity. The call is a high-pitched "laughing" cry. (wikipedia)
This is an adult Common Gull in breeding plumage sitting on its nest in a tree! They breed on the coast and inland in the west of Ireland, from Dingle to Malin Head, with most colonies in Co. Galway, Co. Mayo and Co. Donegal. Inland it can breed on islands in lakes where it has declined. The species is declining in Ireland as a breeding bird, like those of inland breeding Black-headed Gulls, which have been attributed to predation by American Mink, reaching previously safe nesting areas (per Birdwatch Ireland). This photograph was taken in Reine, in the Lofoten Islands in Norway. The nest was in a tree in the front garden of a house there!