Slaty-backed Gull

Larus schistisagus Stejneger, 1884

55–68 cmLength141 cmWingspan1.3 kgWeight

The adult has a dark gray back, white belly and wing patches like a string of pearls.

Busiest months: February and September · Most records: United States, Japan, South Korea

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Adult back and wings dark slate-gray with broad white wing edges
Adult has a string of white patches on the middle primaries
Legs pink and rather short
Adult bill yellow with an orange-red patch near the end

Male, female and young

Immature plumage is rufous.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: February and September · Most records: United States, Japan, South Korea

Slaty-backed Gull has been recorded at 176 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 12 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

St. Paul IslandUnited States2,309 records
GambellUnited States1,463 records
Rausu – Rausu Fishing PortJapan532 records

More places

Edogawa Ward – Kasai Rinkai Park / Kasai Kaihin ParkJapan467 records
Nemuro – Cape NosappuJapan430 records
Funabashi – Funabashi Sanbanze Seaside ParkJapan375 records
Choshi – Choshi PortJapan230 records
Muskegon Wastewater SystemUnited States210 records
Wendy Park, Whiskey IslandUnited States209 records
St. John's – Quidi Vidi LakeCanada192 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United States Japan South Korea Canada China Russia U.S. Outlying Islands United Kingdom

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 slaty-backed gull (Larus schistisagus) is a large, white-headed gull that breeds on the north-eastern coast of the Palearctic, but travels widely during nonbreeding seasons. It is similar in appearance to the western gull and the glaucous-winged gull. Another alternate name is Pacific gull, though it also applies to a Southern Hemisphere species, L. pacificus.

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

Questions

How big is the Slaty-backed Gull?

The Slaty-backed Gull is about 55–68 cm long, with a wingspan of 141 cm and weighs around 1.3 kg.

Where does the Slaty-backed Gull live?

Its breeding range: Palearctic: coasts and lakes of northeastern Siberia south of Anadyr, Kamchatka, Sea of Okhotsk, Sakhalin, Kuril Islands (eastern Russia), northeastern China, and Hokkaido and northern Honshu (northern Japan). It is most often recorded in United States, Japan and South Korea.

When is the best time to see the Slaty-backed Gull?

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

Is the Slaty-backed Gull endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Slaty-backed Gull as Least Concern.

What does the Slaty-backed Gull eat?

Main food: Omnivore.

What family is the Slaty-backed Gull in?

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

At a glance

Length: 55–68 cm
Wingspan: 141 cm
Weight: 1.3 kg
Habitat: Coast & tidal flats
Diet: Omnivore
Lifestyle: Varied
Migration: Partial migrant
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 435 mm
Tail: 172 mm
Bill: 68 mm
Tarsus: 68 mm

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

Range

Palearctic: coasts and lakes of northeastern Siberia south of Anadyr, Kamchatka, Sea of Okhotsk, Sakhalin, Kuril Islands (eastern Russia), northeastern China, and Hokkaido and northern Honshu (northern Japan)

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2