Yellow-legged gull
| Yellow-legged gull | ||||||||||||
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Yellow-legged gull ( Larus livens ) |
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| Larus livens | ||||||||||||
| Dwight , 1919 |
The yellow- legged gull ( Larus livens ) is a species of bird within the gulls (Larinae) and belongs to the genus Larus .
features
Until the 1960s, the yellow-legged gull was listed as a subspecies of the western gull ( Larus occidentalis ) due to its similarity and close relationship . Unlike most of the larger gulls, the yellow-legged gull, 53 to 58 cm tall, is fully grown after three years and not after four. From the second year you can find a black band on the tail, and the back and wings are slate-colored to black feathered - so it looks extremely similar to an adult bird. The legs and feet are pink until the first winter, but then yellow. Adult birds have a white head and a thick, yellow bill.
Occurrence
The yellow-legged gull is mainly found on the Gulf of California in NW Mexico and on the Salton Sea in California . During the breeding season, the populations of the Salton Sea migrate to the Gulf of California, while those resident there remain there for life. Elsewhere in the United States or Mexico, the bird is extremely rare. There are around 60,000 yellow-legged gulls and the population is stable.
nutrition
They mainly feed on fish and invertebrates . But they also steal their chicks or eggs from other seabirds .
Reproduction
It is incubated either alone or in nest colonies.
literature
- Josep del Hoyo et al: Handbook of the birds of the world. Lynx, Barcelona 1992-2005, ISBN 84-87334-10-5 .
- MB Dickinson: Field guide to the birds of North America. Washington 2002, ISBN 0-7922-6877-6 .
- MA Patten: Yellow-footed gull. (= The birds of North America. Vol. 243). Washington 1996, OCLC 973941430 .
- David Sibley: The Sibley guide to birds. Knopf, New York 2000, ISBN 0-679-45122-6 .
Web links
- Larus livens inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved January 14, 2014.