Grey Gull
Leucophaeus modestus
Silhouette: Kai Caspar · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
- FamilyLaridae (Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers)
- GenusLeucophaeus (Hooded Gulls)
- SpeciesLeucophaeus modestus (Grey Gull)
About the Grey Gull
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.
The sexes are similar in grey gulls. Adults grow to a length of about 45 cm (18 in) and weigh some 360 to 400 g (13 to 14 oz). The head is white in summer but brownish-grey in winter. The body and wings are grey with the dorsal surface rather darker than the ventral region. The flight feathers are black and the inner primaries and the secondaries have white tips, visible in flight. The tail has a band of black with a white trailing edge. The legs and beak are black and the iris is brown. The call is similar to that of the laughing gull (Leucophaeus atricilla).
The grey gull breeds inland in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. Its non-breeding range includes Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chile, and it has been recorded in the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. It is a vagrant to Panama and Florida; an earlier report... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Grey Gull in Galápagos Islands
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Galápagos Islands
Lava Gull
Leucophaeus fuliginosus
Franklin's Gull
Leucophaeus pipixcan
Laughing Gull
Leucophaeus atricilla
Brown Noddy
Anous stolidus
Swallow-tailed Gull
Creagrus furcatus
Black Skimmer
Rynchops niger
Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximus
Dominican Gull
Larus dominicanus
Sooty Tern
Onychoprion fuscatus
Arctic Tern
Sterna paradisaea
Common Tern
Sterna hirundo
Elegant Tern
Thalasseus elegans
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paracas National Reserve | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 2 | Celestún Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 3 | Galápagos Islands | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 4 | Machalilla National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 5 | Lauca National Park | 🇨🇱 Chile |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Grey Gull in Galápagos Islands?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Gull sighting in Galápagos Islands, based on 38 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Grey Gull in Galápagos Islands?
July has the highest sighting rate for Grey Gull in Galápagos Islands in our monthly data.