Utah Winter Gulls

  
by Dennis Shirley


General Information  |  Gull Identification  |  Immature Gulls  |  Key to Adult Gulls  |  Species List  |

    
     Western Gull
  (similar species)
  

Adult Western - thick yellow bill, dark gray mantle, black wing tips, pink legs
Photo by Joel Beyer   ©Joel Beyer
  

Adult Western - dark gray mantle that merges into black wing tips,
white tips on primaries, white trailing edge on the wings
by Ted Fitzgerald   ©Ted Fitzgerald
  

Winter Adult Western - the heads of the more northerly birds
are lightly marked with dusky coloring.
by Paul Higgins   ©Paul Higgins
  

2nd Winter - some of the adult's gray mantle color on the back,
retain brown mottling on the wing coverts, bill lightens at the base
by Ted Fitzgerald   ©Ted Fitzgerald
  

3rd Winter - black near tip of bill, dark mottling on head and chest,
shows black tail band in flight (no seen here)
by Lu Giddings   ©Lu Giddings
  
  

Western Gull

Similar Species
   Glaucous-winged Gull - is similar in all plumages to Westerns but is paler; Glaucous-winged's wing tips are never blackish; the adults show more mottling on head neck, and chest in the winter.  Intergrades between Western and Glaucous-winged Gulls are abundant in Pacific Northwest.
   Herring Gull   - Adult Herring Gulls have more contrast between the mantle and the black wing tips; Herrings have a less bulbous bill and pale yellow eyes;   Immature Herrings have paler wings and a slimmer bill.
   Yellow-footed Gulls - have bright yellow legs and feet, darker mantle and deeper bill; first-years are whiter below; second-winter birds are similar to third-winter Westerns but have yellow legs and a black tail band.

  

1st Winter Glaucous-winged -  has paler mottling than Western Gull
   Photo by Rick Fridell   ©Rick Fridell
  

Adult Herring - has more contrast between mantle and black wing tips,
less bulbous bill, pale yellow eye

by Merrill Webb   ©Merrill Webb
  

Yellow-footed Gull - has bright yellow legs and feet, darker mantle, deeper bill.
by Mark Stevenson   ©Mark M. Stevenson
  
 
 

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