Herring Gull

The herring gull, more commonly referred to as a seagull, is one of the most well known seabirds in the UK, but despite their distribution across our coastline and now more prominently inland, their numbers of struggling due to a lack of nest sites and food sources.

Adults have light grey backs, white under parts, and black wing tips. Their legs are pink with webbed feet and they have heavy, slightly curved yellow bills marked with a red spot. Young birds are mottled brown.

Usually hearing them before seeing them, the herring gull is a large and noisy seabird and can be found in large congregations along our coasts and inland around rubbish tips, fields, large reservoirs and lakes, especially during winter. Known for stealing food straight from an unsuspecting tourist, gulls have earned themselves a pretty bad reputation over the last few decades.

As incredibly social birds, their flocks can consist of over a 100 individuals, and be seen heading back out to sea at dusk where they will roost on water overnight, keeping safe from foxes and other predators, before returning to land in the early morning.

Being almost exclusively monogamous, herring gulls will mate for life, and begin their breeding after reaching full maturity at around 4 years old. Historically nesting on cliff faces, gulls now make use of dwelling roofs and industrial estates to rear 1 to 3 chicks on each year. They are devoted parents, and their dive-bomb defence mechanism can occur when they feel threatened or in danger.