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A distinctly long-winged, long-billed gull of the East Asian coastline, breeding in Russia and Japan and wintering as far south as Taiwan and southeastern China; rare in Southeast Asia.
Not listed
At a glance
FamilyGulls, Terns, and Skimmers
SizeGiant
RarityRare
HabitatCoastlines, harbours, offshore waters, estuaries, headlands, beaches, and large inland water when conditions suit.
Best timeMost reliable in Western Australia from June.
Sounds
Sound sampleRecorded by Uku Paal
Range map
Range map
14visible hotspots
43visible records
2states
SparseModerateDense hotspot
Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.
Species notes
Overview
Adult is dark-winged with a black and red tipped bill. Younger birds are dark overall with solid black wingtips, a flashing white rump, and a pale pink bill with a solid black tip. Flight is more buoyant and graceful than other similarly sized gulls. Call reminiscent of a meowing cat.
Behavior
Gathers in large flocks throughout the year.
Gallery