Black-headed Gull

The Black-headed Gull is one of the most familiar and widespread gulls across Europe and Asia, equally at home on inland lakes, farmland, and busy city parks as on the coast. Despite its name, the breeding-season hood is actually a rich chocolate-brown rather than true black, though it can appear dark at a distance.

The mantle and wings are pale gray, the underparts white, and the bill and legs a bright orange-red. A key field mark in flight is the bold white wedge along the leading edge of the outer wing, visible at considerable distance and useful for separating it from similar species. In winter, the hood is lost, leaving a white head with a small dark spot behind the eye.

In North America, the Black-headed Gull is a rare but increasingly regular visitor, most often found in fall and winter among flocks of Bonaparte's Gulls along the Atlantic coast and Great Lakes.

Key field marks

• Chocolate-brown hood in breeding plumage (not truly black)
• Bright orange-red bill and legs
• Bold white wedge on the leading edge of the outer wing, visible in flight
• Pale gray mantle, white underparts
• Small dark ear spot in winter plumage

Similar species

• Bonaparte's Gull: smaller, black (not red) bill, and lacks the leading-edge white wedge in the same bold form; often found alongside vagrant Black-headed Gulls.
• Laughing and Franklin's Gulls: both have dark bills and darker mantles, with different wingtip patterns.
• Little Gull: much smaller with a dark underwing.

Habitat

Highly adaptable, using coastal wetlands, lakes, rivers, farmland, refuse sites, and urban parks; one of the most urban-tolerant gulls in Europe.

Range and migration

Breeds across temperate and northern Eurasia, from Iceland and the British Isles across Europe and Russia to eastern Asia. Northern populations migrate south to milder coasts and inland waters in winter, with some individuals regularly reaching the Atlantic coast of North America and, less often, the interior and Pacific coast.

Behavior

Gregarious and adaptable, Black-headed Gulls readily associate with other gull species, forage in flocks over farmland, and have become common scavengers in cities.

Voice

Calls include a harsh, grating "kree-ar" and various chattering notes given at breeding colonies.

Feeding

Omnivorous, taking insects, earthworms, small fish, and a wide variety of human food waste and refuse.

Nesting and breeding

Nests colonially, often in dense colonies on marshy ground, islands, or moorland, building a simple scrape lined with vegetation. Clutches typically contain two to three eggs, incubated by both parents for about three weeks.