The Caspian gull (''Larus cachinnans'') is a large
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 ...
and a member of the
herring and lesser black-backed gull complex. The scientific name is from
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, 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 ...
. ''Larus'' appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird, and ''cachinnans'' means 'laughing', from ''cachinnare'' 'to laugh'.
Description
It is a large gull at long, with a wingspan and a body mass of .
[ 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
Pla ...
is and the tarsus is .[ The Caspian gull has a long, slender bill, accentuated by the sloping forehead. The legs, wings, and neck are longer than those of the herring gull and yellow-legged gull. The eye is small and often dark, and the legs vary from pale pink to a pale yellowish colour. The back and wings are a slightly darker shade of grey than the herring gull, but slightly paler than the yellow-legged gull. The outermost primary feather has a large white tip and a white tongue running up the inner web.
First-winter birds have a pale head with dark streaking on the back of the neck. The underparts are pale and the back is greyish. The greater and median ]wing coverts
A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which, as the name implies, cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts
The ear coverts are s ...
have whitish tips forming two pale lines across the wing.
Distribution
The Caspian gull breeds around the Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...
and Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central A ...
s, extending eastwards across Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the fo ...
to north-west China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
. In Europe, it has been spreading north and west and now breeds in Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
and eastern Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
. Some birds migrate south as far as the Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
and Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bo ...
, while others disperse into Western Europe
Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context.
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...
, in countries such as Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...
, Norway and Denmark or the Benelux and even North of France. Small numbers are now seen regularly in Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
, especially in South-east England, East Anglia
East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...
, and the Midlands
The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the In ...
.
Breeding
It typically nests on flat, low-lying ground by water, unlike the yellow-legged gull, which mainly nests on cliffs in areas where the two overlap. The breeding season starts from early April. Two or three eggs are laid and incubated for 27 to 31 days.
Feeding
They are scavenger
Scavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While scavenging generally refers to carnivores feeding on carrion, it is also a herbivorous feedin ...
s and predator
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill t ...
s with a very varied diet. During the breeding season, they often eat rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...
s such as ground squirrels, flying some distance into the steppes to find them.
Classification and subspecies
This form has a troubled taxonomic history, summarised in 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 h ...
article. The Caspian gull used to be treated as a subspecies of the herring gull, but it is now treated as a full species by many authorities (e.g. the British Ornithologists' Union
The British Ornithologists' Union (BOU) aims to encourage the study of birds ("ornithology") and around the world, in order to understand their biology and to aid their conservation. The BOU was founded in 1858 by Professor Alfred Newton, Henr ...
records committee). Some authorities include the yellow-legged gull (''L. michahellis'') within ''L. cachinnans'', but it is also now commonly considered to be a separate species.
The steppe gull or Baraba gull (''L. (cachinnans) barabensis'') may be regarded as a subspecies of the Caspian gull or as a separate species. It is also very similar genetically to its northern neighbour, the ''taimyrensis'' race of Heuglin's gull
Heuglin's gull (''Larus fuscus heuglini'') or the Siberian gull, is a seabird in the genus ''Larus''. Taxonomy
It is sometimes considered as a separate species (''Larus heuglini'') but is now usually treated as a subspecies of the lesser black- ...
. The steppe gull breeds in Central Asia, particularly northern Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
. Its nonbreeding range is still little-known, but most are thought to winter in southwestern Asia from the Persian Gulf to northwestern India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
. There are possible records of this form from Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
and South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
.
The Mongolian gull (''L. (vegae/cachinnans) mongolicus'') may be classed as a subspecies of the Caspian gull, a subspecies of the Vega gull, or as a species in its own right. It breeds in Mongolia
Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million ...
and the surrounding areas and migrates southeast in winter.
Мартин жовтоногий (Larus cachinnans). Початок життя.jpg, In Danube Biosphere Reserve
Caspian gull (Larus cachinnans) juvenile Danube delta.jpg, juvenile
Caspian gull (Larus cachinnans) juvenile in flight Danube delta.jpg, juvenile in flight
Caspian gull flying.jpg, adult in flight
References
Further reading
Identification
*
* (identification article including 34 images of Caspian Gulls of various ages)
*
* (addresses identification in juvenile plumage)
*
* (detailed identification paper, covering typical individuals)
External links
Caspian Gull photos
Rudy's Gull-index
incl. Caspian gull and hybrids
Identification of Caspian Gull
Berkshire Birds
Steppe gull ''barabensis'' in South Korea
Birds Korea
Pictures of Caspian gulls from all ages
included some hybrids and ringed Caspian gulls
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q389505
Caspian gull
Birds of Central Asia
Caspian gull
Taxa named by Peter Simon Pallas