Black-headed Gull

Chroicocephalus ridibundus

Silhouette: Hans Hillewaert · PhyloPic

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
FamilyLaridae (Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers)
GenusChroicocephalus (Masked Gulls and allies)
SpeciesChroicocephalus ridibundus (Black-headed Gull)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Tsavo East National Park

1 Verified sightings at Tsavo East National Park From 2019 to 2026

31,251 Verified sightings across all 47 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Black-headed Gull

The black-headed gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) is a small gull that breeds in much of the Palearctic in Europe and Asia, and also locally in smaller numbers in coastal eastern Canada. Most of the population is migratory and winters further south, but many also remain in the milder areas of northwestern Europe. It was formerly sometimes cited as "common black-headed gull" to distinguish it from "great black-headed gull" (an old name for Pallas's gull).

The genus name Chroicocephalus is from the Ancient Greek words khroizo, "to colour", and kephale, "head". The specific name ridibundus is Latin for "laughing". The black-headed gull was formally described in 1766 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with the other gulls in the genus Larus and coined the binomial name Larus ridibundus. Linnaeus specified the locality as Mari Europaeo or European seas.

Genetic studies published early in the 21st century showed that the genus Larus was paraphyletic with respect to other gull genera, and extensive changes to the taxonomy of gulls were made with many species of gull removed from Larus and transferred to other... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Tsavo East National Park

Gelochelidon nilotica

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Thalasseus bengalensis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Chlidonias leucopterus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Sterna hirundo

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Ichthyaetus hemprichii

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Thalasseus bergii

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Sternula albifrons

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Sterna dougallii

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Anous stolidus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Sterna repressa

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Anous tenuirostris

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Hydroprogne caspia

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Thingvellir National Park	🇮🇸 Iceland	~90%
2	Vatnajokull National Park	🇮🇸 Iceland	~70%
3	Camargue	🇫🇷 France	~70%
4	Fertő-Hanság National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	~70%
5	Hortobágy National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	~70%
6	Wadden Sea National Park	🇩🇪 Germany	~60%
7	Biebrza National Park	🇵🇱 Poland	~50%
8	Kiskunság National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	~50%
9	Snowdonia National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	~40%
10	Cairngorms National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	~40%
11	Białowieża National Park	🇵🇱 Poland	~30%
12	Doñana National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	~20%
13	Sierra de Guadarrama National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	~20%
14	Bavarian Forest National Park	🇩🇪 Germany	~20%
15	Lake Nakuru National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	~10%
16	Monfragüe National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	~10%
17	Gauja National Park	🇱🇻 Latvia	~10%
18	Sundarbans National Park	🇮🇳 India	<5%
19	Tatra National Park	🇸🇰 Slovakia	<5%
20	Keoladeo National Park	🇮🇳 India	<5%
21	Triglav National Park	🇸🇮 Slovenia	<5%
22	Murchison Falls National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	<5%
23	Kaziranga National Park	🇮🇳 India	<5%
24	Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park	🇲🇳 Mongolia	<5%
25	Pyrénées National Park	🇫🇷 France	<5%
26	Satpura National Park	🇮🇳 India	<5%
27	Chitwan National Park	🇳🇵 Nepal	<5%
28	Ngorongoro Conservation Area	🇹🇿 Tanzania	<5%
29	Main Ridge Forest Reserve	🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	Insufficient data
30	Point Pelee National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	Insufficient data
31	Mercantour National Park	🇫🇷 France	Insufficient data
32	Table Mountain National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
33	Plitvice Lakes National Park	🇭🇷 Croatia	Insufficient data
34	Cévennes National Park	🇫🇷 France	Insufficient data
35	Queen Elizabeth National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	Insufficient data
36	Jim Corbett National Park	🇮🇳 India	Insufficient data
37	Cape Breton Highlands National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	Insufficient data
38	Ranthambore National Park	🇮🇳 India	Insufficient data
39	Nairobi National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	Insufficient data
40	Raja Ampat	🇮🇩 Indonesia	Insufficient data
41	Sierra Nevada National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	Insufficient data
42	Gros Morne National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	Insufficient data
43	Bandhavgarh National Park	🇮🇳 India	Insufficient data
44	Tsavo East National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	Insufficient data
45	Virunga National Park	🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo	Insufficient data
46	Manas National Park	🇮🇳 India	Insufficient data
47	Serengeti National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	Insufficient data

← Back to Tsavo East National Park

Black-headed Gull

About the Black-headed Gull

Recent sightings of Black-headed Gull in Tsavo East National Park

Closest Relatives at Tsavo East National Park

Gull-billed Tern

Lesser Crested Tern

White-winged Tern

Common Tern

Sooty Gull

Crested Tern

Little Tern

Roseate Tern

Brown Noddy

White-cheeked Tern

Lesser Noddy

Caspian Tern

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found