Yellow-footed Gull

Basic Description

Yellow-footed Gulls are handsome seabirds—their dark gray upperparts, inky black wingtips, and bright yellow feet are a unique combination among North American gulls. The small population of just 40,000 breeding individuals nests exclusively on desert islands in Mexico's Gulf of California. These large, opportunistic gulls forage along shorelines and at sea, catching fish and marine invertebrates, raiding seabird colonies, and stealing food from other waterbirds. Following the breeding season, some Yellow-footed Gulls disperse annually to California’s Salton Sea.