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Leucophaeus atricilla Linnaeus, 1758
Laughing Gull
Synonym(s): Larus atricilla
Florida native
One of the more common gulls of Florida coastal areas year-round, also found throughout the peninsula in the winter. Year-round populations can be found all along the southeastern coast from Texas to North Carolina and throughout the Caribbean. Migratory populations typically breed along the Atlantic coast from Virginia to Maine and along the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes then spend the winter from Mexico, through Central America and the northern half of South America.
Laughing gulls are slender medium-sized gulls 39-46cm (15.3-18.1 in) long with a wingspan of 92-120 cm (36.2-47.2 in). Adults are medium-gray above and white below with a fair-sized bill that droops at the tip and black legs. During the summer breeding season they have a black hood with small white arcs above and below the eyes and a reddish bill. Outside the breeding season the bill is black and the hood fades to nondescript gray markings on the head. Immature birds are brownish on top and take two to three years to fully attain adult plumage.
Leucophaeus atricilla is a member of the Laridae - Gulls, Terns & Skimmers family.
iNaturalist profile for this species
For more information on this species, visit the following link:
Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds page for this species
Date record last modified: Nov 16, 2023
