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Laughing Gull

The laughing gull is a familiar and noisy presence along North and South American coastlines, known for its iconic “ha ha ha” call — from which it got its name!

 

The laughing gull, like most other gulls, is dressed in classic shades of black, white, and gray. It can be found along both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the Americas, where it nests on densely vegetated sandy beaches, islands, and saltmarshes. In warmer regions such as the Caribbean, laughing gulls may breed year-round, while populations from colder areas—like the northeastern United States — breed seasonally and migrate south to spend the winter. 

Highly social by nature, laughing gulls are often seen in large, boisterous flocks. They form nesting colonies along bays, marshes, and estuaries, building nests out of sticks and grass. True to their name, these gulls are noisy and often quarrelsome. Their diet is varied and opportunistic, consisting primarily of aquatic invertebrates, like shellfish and crab, and insects. However, they are also quite the scavengers, consuming anything from scraps, trash, refuse from fishing boats, and fish — often even stealing prey from other birds like pelicans and terns.  

 

 

At one point in time, the laughing gull was hunted for its plumage, which was used to make hats. They have since received protections and their populations recovered. In fact, this species has seen a statistically significant increase in the last 40 years, leading to the IUCN Red List to list them as species of Least Concern. 

 

 

Keeping our oceans healthy and abundant ensures that wildlife like laughing gulls can continue to thrive. Oceana campaigns around the world to rebuild abundant and biodiverse oceans so that all marine life has the protections and habitat they need to thrive. 

 

 

 

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