Vega Gull Photo Gallery
Breeding adult
A large, highly variable gull with a heavy bill. Breeding adult has bright yellow bill with red mark near tip, white head and underparts, and black wingtips with white spots. Upperparts range from medium to dark gray. Legs in breeding plumage are typically bright pink. Eye color is often dark but can be yellowish as in this individual.
© Ian Davies / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, May 22, 2013Nonbreeding adult
Nonbreeding adult has variable streaking on the head, neck, and upper breast. Both the bill and legs are paler than in breeding adults.
© Graham Gerdeman / Macaulay LibraryMiyazaki, February 03, 2023Breeding adult
A large, heavy-billed gull. Breeding adult has white head and underparts, a yellow bill with red spot near tip, pink legs, gray upperparts, and black wingtips with limited white visible at rest.
© Josep del Hoyo / Macaulay LibrarySakha, July 02, 2019Not all videos have soundNonbreeding adult
Adult in flight has black wingtips with white tips to the feathers and two large white spots (“mirrors”) in the outermost primaries. Note also the fairly wide white trailing edge to the wings and the dusky underwings.
© Graham Gerdeman / Macaulay LibraryKumamoto, February 01, 2023Juvenile
Juvenile has brown head and underparts with diffuse light markings. Brown upperpart feathers are heavily edged with buffy white, creating a scaly look. Note black bill, dark eye, blackish wingtips, and pale pink legs.
© Julio Mulero / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, September 01, 2022Nonbreeding adult
Nonbreeding adult is like breeding adult, but with streaking on head, neck, and upper breast. Typically occurs along the coast of East Asia during the winter.
© Josep del Hoyo / Macaulay LibraryChiba, January 22, 2010Not all videos have soundJuvenile
In flight, note juvenile’s whitish rump (contrasting with brown tip to tail) and conspicuous pale “panel” in the inner primaries.
© Alvaro Jaramillo / Macaulay LibraryIbaraki, February 01, 2024Juvenile
Breeds exclusively in northeastern Siberia except for a small nesting population on St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, in the Bering Sea.
© Cory Gregory / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, September 20, 2016Breeding adult
An opportunistic forager and scavenger, feeding on garbage, carrion, fish, marine invertebrates, mammals, and other seabirds.
© Josep del Hoyo / Macaulay LibrarySakha, July 02, 2019Not all videos have soundFirst summer
Individuals typically take four years to attain full adult plumage. First-summer birds are highly variable, showing a mix of juvenile plumage, new feathers on the head, back, and underparts, and older feathers that can be significantly bleached.
© Bryce Robinson / Macaulay LibraryAlaska, July 15, 2016Second winter
Second-year birds gradually become lighter than juveniles, showing some gray on the back.
© Alvaro Jaramillo / Macaulay LibraryIbaraki, February 01, 2024Third winter
Mainly a coastal species of East Asia during the winter, visiting harbors, beaches, and coastal wetlands and estuaries.
© Graham Gerdeman / Macaulay LibraryHokkaido, January 28, 2023Compare with Similar Species
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Species in This Family
Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers(Order: Charadriiformes, Family: Laridae)
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