Little Gull (Larus minutus)

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A Field Guide to Eastern Birds. by Roger Tory Peterson.

Return to Eastern Gulls and Terns

Color Drawing: F.O. Morris

Little Gull (Larus minutus)

Identification: Length from tip of bill to tip of tail 11 inches.

Adult Summer Plumage: The smallest eastern gull .Head black, contrasting with the general gray and white coloration of the rest of the body. Bill red, eye with a white eye ring. Back gray. Wings gray with only a fine, white, rear wing margin. Underside white. Undersides of the wings distinctly darker than the top side. Tail white. Legs dull red.

Adult Winter Plumage: Similar to the summer plumage, but head largely white with a gray back of the head and a black spot behind and slightly below the eye.

Immature: Head white with a dark spot below and behind the eye. Back of the neck gray. Wing gray with the apical third of the wing black and with a prominent black band running from the rear, basal margin to the wrist.

Similar Species:  There are several species of gulls with black heads in their adult, summer plumage. The Little Gull is, by far, the smallest species of the group. These species are best identified by the configuration of colors on the wings. The Laughing Gull has an entirely gray wing with a narrow, white, rear margin. The wings tend to shade to black toward the apex. The coloration of the wing is darker than that of the Little Gull. Bonaparte's Gull has wings with a gray base (the secondary feathers. The outer, forward edge of the wing is white. The tips of the long, outer feathers (the primary feathers) are black. Sabine's Gull has a black outer, forward wing patch, and inner, white rear margin, and a pale gray inner, forward margin. The entire forward wing margin of the Black-headed Gull is white. The rest of the wing is light gray. The tips of the primary feathers are black. The immature Little Gull is easily separated from these other species not only by its small size, but by the distinctive black apex of the wing and the black band running from the rear base of the wing to the wrist.

Breeding Range: The Little Gull breeds primarily in central Europe eastward to Siberia. However the species is rarely found in North America and has been found breeding in Ontario and Wisconsin.

Overwintering Range:  This species is sometimes seen overwintering along the Atlantic Coast from New Brunswick to New Jersey.

Habitat: The Little Gull is found in a variety of aquatic environments including marshes, lakes, rivers, and along the coast during the winter.

Food: Insects and small fish.

Behavior: The Little Gull looks like a small gull, but behaves like a tern with a light, floating flight over the surface of water. Prey items are snatched from the surface of the water. The voice is a soft kek-kek-kek-kek.

Reproduction:  The clutch consists of 3 brown-spotted olive-brown eggs. The eggs are laid in a nest lined with leaves and grass and the nest is hidden among swamp and marsh vegetation.