The Iceland gull (''Larus glaucoides'') is a medium-sized

gull Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century, m ...

that breeds in the Arctic regions of Canada and

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

, but not in

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

(as its name suggests), where it is only seen during winter. The genus name is from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''larus'', which appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird. The specific name ''glaucoides'' denotes its resemblance to ''Larus glaucus'', a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

of ''Larus hyperboreus'', the

glaucous gull The glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus'') is a large gull, the second-largest gull in the world. It breeds in Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and winters south to shores of the Holarctic. The genus name is from Latin ''larus'', which a ...

; ''-oides'' is

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

and means "resembling".

Description

The Iceland gull is a medium-sized gull, although relatively slender and light in weight. In length, it can measure from , wingspan is from , and weight is from . Among standard measurements, the wing chord is , the

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

is , and the tarsus is . It is smaller and thinner-billed than the very large glaucous gull, and is usually smaller than the

herring gull Herring gull is a common name for several birds in the genus ''Larus'', all formerly treated as a single species. Three species are still combined in some taxonomies: * American herring gull (''Larus smithsonianus'') - North America * European he ...

. It takes four years to reach maturity. Larus glaucoides DrydenNY

Call

The call is a "laughing" cry like the

, but higher pitched. Larus glaucoides MWNH 0322

Ecology

It is migratory, wintering from in the North

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

as far south as the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

and northernmost states of the eastern United States, as well as in the interior of North America as far west as the western

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

. It is much scarcer in Europe than the similar glaucous gull. This species breeds colonially or singly on coasts and cliffs, making a nest lined with grass, moss, or seaweed on the ground or cliff. Normally, two or three light brown eggs are laid. They breed in Canada and Greenland, but not in Iceland. Like most ''Larus'' gulls, these are omnivores, eating fish, molluscs, offal, scraps, and eggs. They forage while flying, picking up food at or just below the water's surface, and they also feed while walking or swimming. Their scavenging habits lead them to frequent garbage dumps, sewage outlets, and places where fish are cleaned.

Taxonomy and systematics

The American

taxon In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

of Iceland gull by the

American Ornithological Society The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its m ...

as of 2017 considers the following as subspecies: *

Kumlien's gull Kumlien's gull (''Larus glaucoides kumlieni'') is a subspecies of the Iceland gull. It is a large gull which breeds in the Arctic regions of Canada. It is migratory, wintering from Labrador south to New England and west across the Great Lakes. ...

, ''L. g. kumlieni'' *

Thayer's gull Thayer's gull (''Larus glaucoides thayeri'') is a subspecies of the Iceland gull. It is a large gull native to North America that breeds in the Arctic islands of Canada and winters primarily on the Pacific coast, from southern Alaska to the Gulf ...

, ''L. g. thayeri'' The nominate subspecies, ''L. g. glaucoides'', is very pale in all plumage, with absolutely no melanin in the tips of the primaries in adult plumage. Adults are pale grey above, with a yellowish-green bill. Immatures are very pale grey; the bill is more extensively dark than with glaucous gull, and lacks pink.

References

External links

* * * * * * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q174232 Iceland gull Birds of the Arctic Iceland gull Taxa named by Bernhard Meyer