White-eyed gull

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White-eyed gull
Larus-leucophthalmus.jpg

White-eyed gull ( Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus )

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Plover-like (Charadriiformes)
Family : Laridae
Subfamily : Seagulls (larinae)
Genre : Ichthyaetus
Type : White-eyed gull
Scientific name
Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus
( Temminck , 1825)

The white-eyed gull ( Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus ) is a species of seagulls . The relatively small range is limited to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden , where the species breeds on islands near the coast. The IUCN classifies the white-eyed gull as a species on the warning list (near threatened) .

features

White-eyed gulls are medium-sized and slender gulls. With a body length of 39–43 cm and a wingspan of 100–109 cm, this species is about the size of a common gull . In the magnificent dress , the head, neck and bib are black, above and below the eye there is a wide white crescent moon. The chest and shoulders are light gray, the back and upper elytra are darker gray, the rest of the trunk and tail are white. The wings are gray at the base and otherwise black, the arm wings and the inner hand wings are bordered in white. The underside of the wing is almost monochrome gray, only the tips of the outer hand wings are blackish. The long and slender beak is two-colored with a red base and black tip. The iris is dark, the legs are light greenish yellow.

In the plain dress , the head region, which is black in the magnificent dress, is dashed in black on a whitish background.

White-eyed gull in the first spring (around 1 year old) with already partially pronounced black head markings

In the youth dress the head, neck, upper chest, shoulders and lower wings are almost monochrome dark brown-gray. The crescent moons around the eyes are already there, but much narrower than in adult animals. The upper wing-coverts are also dark brown-gray, but with a broad, light-brown edge. The wings and the control feathers are almost monochrome blackish, the arm wings and the inner hand wings are edged white like the adult ones. The rest of the trunk is white, the rump is white with dark dots or spots. The beak is a solid dark gray; the legs are light yellowish pink. At the age of three the birds are colored.

distribution and habitat

The relatively small distribution area is limited to the coasts of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden . Outside the breeding season, white-eyed gulls can also be found in the Gulf of Aqaba and on the open sea. Odd visitors have been found in Turkey, on the Israeli Mediterranean coast, in the United Arab Emirates , in Oman and in Iran .

Way of life

White-eyed gulls mostly forage in the coastal seas, but some Egyptian populations also use rubbish dumps as a source of food. The diet consists of fish, crustaceans, molluscs , annelid worms and waste. The species breeds on shallow islands near the coast in loose colonies near the beach. The nests are located on rocky terrain free of vegetation or on open sandy areas. The nest is a shallow hollow in the ground that is surrounded by some material.

Existence and endangerment

The IUCN gives the world population excluding Eritrea for 2003 with 12,000-13,000 breeding pairs, including Eritrea it estimates the world population at 37,000–44,000 individuals. The largest populations have the Yemen with at least 3900 pairs, Egypt with 2500 pairs and Somalia with 1200-2200 pairs.

The population is still considered stable, but the IUCN fears a population decline within the next three generations (33 years). The main risk factors are soil predators introduced on the breeding islands, e.g. B. rats , as well as oil spills on the sea and on the beaches. Further threats arise from the use of chicks and eggs for human consumption (especially in Somalia), disturbances in the breeding colonies by fishermen and tourists, and from drilling for oil exploration. The IUCN therefore classifies the white-eyed gull as a type of the warning list (near threatened) .

swell

literature

  • PERSGA / GEF 2004: Regional Action Plan for the Conservation of Breeding Seabirds and their Habitats in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. PERSGA, Jeddah: p. 48 PDF
  • RF Porter, S. Christensen and P. Schiermacker-Hansen: Birds of the Middle East. Princeton University Press, Princeton and Oxford, 2004: pp. 90-91 and 305-306, ISBN 978-0-691-12104-8
  • L. Svensson, PJ Grant, K. Mullarney, D. Zetterström: The new cosmos bird guide . Kosmos, Stuttgart 1999: pp. 182-183, ISBN 3-440-07720-9

Web links

Web links

Commons : White-eyed Gull  - Collection of images, videos and audio files