Great black-backed gull: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the great black-backed gull lives – recorded in 33 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Larus marinus
Group	Waders, gulls, terns & auks
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	33 countries
Continents	Asia, Europe, North America
Class	Bird
Order	Charadriiformes
Family	Laridae

Where does the great black-backed gull live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the great black-backed gull in 33 countries and territories across Asia, Europe and North America. Wikidata gives its range as: Africa, South America.

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the great black-backed gull endangered?

The great black-backed gull’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the great black-backed gull?

The great black-backed gull (Larus marinus) is a bird in the order Charadriiformes and the family Laridae, genus Larus. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the great black-backed gull

The great black-backed gull (Larus marinus) is the largest member of the gull and tern family Laridae. It is a very aggressive hunter, pirate and scavenger which breeds on the North Atlantic coasts and islands of northern Europe and northeastern North America. Southern populations are generally sedentary, while those breeding in the far north (northern Norway, northwest Russia) migrate farther south in winter. A few also move inland to large lakes and reservoirs. The adult has a white head, neck and underparts, dark blackish-grey wings and back, pink legs and the bill yellow with a red spot.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Great black-backed gull (revision 1380682858), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q26629 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).