European Herring Gull | Oceana
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Marine Life Encyclopedia

Seabirds

European Herring Gull

Larus Argentatus

Distribution

Sub-tropical to sub-polar latitudes of Europe and west Asia

ECOSYSTEM/HABITAT

Nest on rocky shores; feed in freshwater and coastal waters

FEEDING HABITS

Foraging predator/scavenger

TAXONOMY

Order Charadriiformes (gulls, auks, and relatives), Family Laridae (gulls)

Like many seagulls, the European herring gull eats a variety of prey and will both hunt and scavenge for suitable food. They forage for a variety of living, coastal invertebrates and for human garbage. In today’s human ecosystem, garbage accounts for a large percentage of this gull’s diet. When other seabirds form nesting colonies, European herring gulls will attack nests and eat both eggs and juvenile birds. During nesting season, their diet becomes more heavily weighted toward small, pelagic fishes. Individuals in the northernmost part of the range migrate to warmer latitudes during the winter and back to their nesting areas in the spring.

Like all seabirds, European herring gulls nest on land. Males arrive to nesting areas first and defend territories, which the females will only approach if they are interested in mating. They reproduce via internal fertilization, and the females lay fertilized eggs directly on the ground, along both rocky shores and sandy beaches. Both males and females incubate the eggs and care for the chicks. In some cases, European herring gulls mate for life.

The European herring gull is a common species throughout its range and is a species of least conservation concern. In some places, however, populations are decreasing, a likely result of disease, pollution, and habitat loss. This negative trend is not currently a threat to the species existence. In degraded systems, European herring gulls may actually increase in numbers. They are successful in the human ecosystem and thrive in areas with high human disturbance (like construction sites and landfill operations).

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Additional Resources:

IUCN Red List

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