Ross's Gull

Rhodostethia rosea (MacGillivray, W, 1824)

≈34 cmLength87 cmWingspan187 gWeight

It is a small gull with a pink wash, a black neck ring and a wedge-shaped tail in adult summer plumage.

Busiest months: June · Most records: United States, Canada, Ireland

Looks like Little Gull

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Adult in summer plumage has pale gray upperparts and white underparts, with a pink wash on the body feathers
Adult in summer plumage has a neat black neck ring
Tail wedge-shaped; wings more pointed than in Little Gull
Legs red

Male, female and young

Juvenile resembles winter adult but lacks pink, with a dark “W” on the upperwing in flight; takes two years to acquire adult plumage.

Similar species

Little Gull

Ross's Gull is slightly larger than Little Gull, with longer, more pointed wings and a wedge-shaped tail; juveniles of both have a dark “W” on the upperwing.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: June · Most records: United States, Canada, Ireland

Ross's Gull has been recorded at 54 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 15 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

ChurchillCanada331 records
GambellUnited States95 records
Cherry Creek SPUnited States93 records

More places

St. Paul IslandUnited States91 records
Pillar Point HarborUnited States57 records
South Park & Mutton Island CausewayIreland43 records
Hammonasset Beach SPUnited States40 records
Nieuwpoort - IJzermondingBelgium30 records
Nimmos PierIreland29 records
Riverlands Migratory Bird SanctuaryUnited States29 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United States Canada Ireland United Kingdom Spain Belgium Iceland Netherlands

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

Ross's gull (Rhodostethia rosea) is a small gull, the only species in its genus, although it has been suggested the genus should be merged with the closely related Hydrocoloeus, which otherwise only includes the little gull.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Ross's Gull?

The Ross's Gull is about ≈34 cm long, with a wingspan of 87 cm and weighs around 187 g.

Where does the Ross's Gull live?

Its breeding range: Palearctic, North America: western, eastern Greenland (rare); Arctic northeastern Siberia, locally from Taimyr Peninsula to Kolyma River; Arctic northeastern Canada and formerly Churchill, Manitoba (west-central Hudson Bay, east-central Canada). It is most often recorded in United States, Canada and Ireland.

When is the best time to see the Ross's Gull?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in June (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Ross's Gull endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Ross's Gull as Least Concern.

What does the Ross's Gull eat?

Main food: Fish, shrimp & shellfish.

What family is the Ross's Gull in?

It belongs to the family Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae), order Charadriiformes.

At a glance

Length: ≈34 cm
Wingspan: 87 cm
Weight: 187 g
Habitat: Coast & tidal flats
Diet: Fish, shrimp & shellfish
Lifestyle: Feeds in the air
Migration: Partial migrant
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 251 mm
Tail: 107 mm
Bill: 26 mm
Tarsus: 30 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Palearctic, North America: western, eastern Greenland (rare); Arctic northeastern Siberia, locally from Taimyr Peninsula to Kolyma River; Arctic northeastern Canada and formerly Churchill, Manitoba (west-central Hudson Bay, east-central Canada)

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2