Bird Album
Black-tailed Gull
Larus crassirostris Vieillot, 1818
≈54 cmLength124 cmWingspan561 gWeight
It is a medium-sized gull with a black tail, yellow legs and cat-like calls.
Busiest months: May · Most records: China, Japan, South Korea
How to identify
Field marks
- Tail black
- Red and black spots near end of bill
- Legs yellow
- Medium-sized gull, about 46 cm in body length
Male, female and young
Sexes identical in plumage, male larger; takes four years to acquire full adult plumage.
Voice
The most frequent call is a cat-like mewing, used as a contact call.
Where and when it's recorded
Busiest months: May · Most records: China, Japan, South Korea
Black-tailed Gull has been recorded at 443 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 10 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Edogawa Ward – Kasai Rinkai Park / Kasai Kaihin ParkJapan1,243 records
- Funabashi – Funabashi Sanbanze Seaside ParkJapan863 records
- Nanpu MudflatChina750 records
More places
- Lanyang River Estuary IBATaiwan (China)449 records
- Wajima – Hegurajima (island)Japan418 records
- Eocheong-do (island)South Korea399 records
- Baengnyeong-do (island)South Korea374 records
- Lanyang River Estuary IBA – North Shore Observation SpotTaiwan (China)362 records
- Nanhui DongtanChina319 records
- Sakata – Tobishima (island)Japan305 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
Questions
How big is the Black-tailed Gull?
The Black-tailed Gull is about ≈54 cm long, with a wingspan of 124 cm and weighs around 561 g.
Where does the Black-tailed Gull live?
Its breeding range: Palearctic: coasts and islets of eastern Siberia, Sakhalin and Kuril Islands (southeastern Russia), Hokkaido and Honshu (northern, central Japan), Korean Peninsula, eastern China and Matsu Islands (=Lienchiang County; west of Taiwan (China)). It is most often recorded in China, Japan and South Korea.
When is the best time to see the Black-tailed Gull?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in May (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Black-tailed Gull endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Black-tailed Gull as Least Concern.
What does the Black-tailed Gull eat?
Main food: Fish, shrimp & shellfish.
What family is the Black-tailed Gull in?
It belongs to the family Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae), order Charadriiformes.
At a glance
- Length
- ≈54 cm
- Wingspan
- 124 cm
- Weight
- 561 g
- Habitat
- Coast & tidal flats
- Diet
- Fish, shrimp & shellfish
- Lifestyle
- Feeds in the air
- Migration
- Partial migrant
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 364 mm
- Tail
- 135 mm
- Bill
- 59 mm
- Tarsus
- 53 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Palearctic: coasts and islets of eastern Siberia, Sakhalin and Kuril Islands (southeastern Russia), Hokkaido and Honshu (northern, central Japan), Korean Peninsula, eastern China and Matsu Islands (=Lienchiang County; west of Taiwan (China))
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Gulls, Terns, Skimmers Laridae
- Genus
- Larus
Other birds in the genus Larus
Pacific GullLarus pacificus
Belcher's GullLarus belcheri
Olrog's GullLarus atlanticus
Heermann's GullLarus heermanni
Common GullLarus canus
Short-billed GullLarus brachyrhynchus
Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
Yellow-footed GullLarus livens
Western GullLarus occidentalis
Caspian GullLarus cachinnans
Kelp GullLarus dominicanus
European Herring GullLarus argentatus
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Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from reference photos. ↗
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