Bird Album
Grey Gull
Leucophaeus modestus (Tschudi, 1843)
45 cmLength344 gWeight
The grey gull, also known as garuma gull (Leucophaeus modestus), is a medium-sized gull native to South America.
Busiest months: May, July and October · Most records: Chile, Peru, Ecuador
Where and when it's recorded
Busiest months: May, July and October · Most records: Chile, Peru, Ecuador
Grey Gull has been recorded at 60 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 4 countries and regions.
Records by month Southern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Río Lluta – DesembocaduraChile2,392 records
- SN Humedal Río Maipo – DesembocaduraChile2,359 records
- Refugio de Vida Silvestre Los Pantanos de Villa – Laguna Costera y Playa MarvillaPeru1,622 records
More places
- Estero MantaguaChile938 records
- Río Elqui – DesembocaduraChile826 records
- Río Aconcagua – Desembocadura Humedal UrbanoChile765 records
- Humedal de ChilcaPeru685 records
- Reñaca – MontemarChile651 records
- Refugio de Vida Silvestre Los Pantanos de VillaPeru593 records
- Quintero – PelágicoChile538 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.
About
The grey gull, also known as garuma gull (Leucophaeus modestus), is a medium-sized gull native to South America. Unusual among gulls, it breeds inland in the extremely dry Atacama Desert in northern Chile, although it is present as a non-breeding bird along much of the Pacific coast of South America.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Grey Gull?
The Grey Gull is about 45 cm long and weighs around 344 g.
Where does the Grey Gull live?
Its breeding range: South America: Atacama Desert (northern Chile). It is most often recorded in Chile, Peru and Ecuador.
When is the best time to see the Grey Gull?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in May, July and October (Southern Hemisphere).
What does the Grey Gull eat?
Main food: Fish, shrimp & shellfish.
What family is the Grey Gull in?
It belongs to the family Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae), order Charadriiformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 45 cm
- Weight
- 344 g
- Habitat
- Ocean
- Diet
- Fish, shrimp & shellfish
- Lifestyle
- Varied
- Migration
- Partial migrant
More measurements
- Wing
- 318 mm
- Tail
- 117 mm
- Bill
- 51 mm
- Tarsus
- 47 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
South America: Atacama Desert (northern Chile)
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Gulls, Terns, Skimmers Laridae
- Genus
- Leucophaeus
Other birds in the genus Leucophaeus
Dolphin GullLeucophaeus scoresbii
Laughing GullLeucophaeus atricilla
Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcan
Lava GullLeucophaeus fuliginosus
African SkimmerRynchops flavirostris
Indian SkimmerRynchops albicollis
Black SkimmerRynchops niger
Atlantic White TernGygis alba
Little White TernGygis microrhyncha
Brown NoddyAnous stolidus
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Gunnar Engblom. ↗
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