Data Zone
Taxonomic note
Larus argentatus and L. smithsonianus (the latter including vegae and mongolicus) (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) were previously lumped as L. argentatus following Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993).
Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.
| Critically Endangered | Endangered | Vulnerable |
|---|---|---|
| - | - | - |
| Year | Category | Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Least Concern | |
| 2016 | Least Concern | |
| 2014 | Least Concern | |
| 2012 | Not Recognised | |
| 2008 | Not Recognised | |
| 2004 | Not Recognised | |
| 2000 | Not Recognised | |
| 1994 | Not Recognised | |
| 1988 | Not Recognised |
| Migratory status | full migrant | Forest dependency | does not normally occur in forest |
| Land-mass type | Average mass | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | |
|---|---|---|
| Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident) | 51,400,000 km2 | medium |
| Extent of Occurrence (non-breeding) | 74,100,000 km2 | medium |
| Severely fragmented? | no | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | Derivation | Year of estimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population size | unknown | poor | estimated | 2014 |
| Population trend | decreasing | - | suspected | - |
| Generation length | 13 years | - | - | - |
Population justification: The population is estimated to number c.430,000-520,000 individuals (Wetlands International 2014).
Trend justification: This species has undergone a small or statistically insignificant decrease over the last 40 years in North America (data from Breeding Bird Survey and/or Christmas Bird Count: Butcher and Niven 2007) and is listed as declining by Wetlands International (2014).
| Country/Territory | Presence | Origin | Resident | Breeding visitor | Non-breeding visitor | Passage migrant |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antigua and Barbuda | extant | native | yes | |||
| Aruba (to Netherlands) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Bahamas | extant | native | yes | |||
| Barbados | extant | native | yes | |||
| Belize | extant | native | yes | |||
| Bermuda (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Canada | extant | native | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Cayman Islands (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| China (mainland) | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Colombia | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Costa Rica | extant | native | yes | |||
| Cuba | extant | native | yes | |||
| Dominica | extant | native | yes | |||
| Dominican Republic | extant | native | yes | |||
| Ecuador | extant | vagrant | ||||
| El Salvador | extant | native | yes | |||
| Guadeloupe (to France) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Guatemala | extant | native | yes | |||
| Haiti | extant | native | yes | |||
| Honduras | extant | native | yes | |||
| Hong Kong (China) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Jamaica | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Japan | extant | native | yes | |||
| Kazakhstan | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Martinique (to France) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Mexico | extant | native | yes | |||
| Mongolia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Montserrat (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Nicaragua | extant | native | yes | |||
| North Korea | extant | native | yes | |||
| Northern Mariana Islands (to USA) | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Palau | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Panama | extant | native | yes | |||
| Philippines | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Puerto Rico (to USA) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Russia | extant | native | yes | yes | yes | |
| Russia (Asian) | extant | native | yes | yes | yes | |
| South Korea | extant | native | yes | |||
| St Kitts and Nevis | extant | native | yes | |||
| St Lucia | extant | native | yes | |||
| St Pierre and Miquelon (to France) | extant | native | yes | |||
| St Vincent and the Grenadines | extant | native | yes | |||
| Taiwan, China | extant | native | yes | |||
| Thailand | extant | native | yes | |||
| Trinidad and Tobago | extant | native | yes | |||
| Turks and Caicos Islands (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| United States Minor Outlying Islands (to USA) | extant | vagrant | ||||
| USA | extant | native | yes | yes | yes | |
| Venezuela | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Vietnam | extant | native | yes | |||
| Virgin Islands (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Virgin Islands (to USA) | extant | native | yes |
| Habitat (level 1) | Habitat (level 2) | Importance | Occurrence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Excavations (open) | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Water Storage Areas (over 8ha) | suitable | non-breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Arable Land | suitable | non-breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Urban Areas | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Urban Areas | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | Coastal Freshwater Lakes | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | Coastal Freshwater Lakes | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | Sea Cliffs and Rocky Offshore Islands | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Rocky Shoreline | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Salt Marshes (Emergent Grasses) | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Shingle and/or Pebble Shoreline and/or Beaches | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Tidepools | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Estuaries | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Pelagic | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Pelagic | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Oceanic | Epipelagic (0-200m) | marginal | resident |
| Marine Oceanic | Mesopelagic (200-1000m) | marginal | resident |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) | suitable | non-breeding |
| Altitude | 0 - 2000 m | Occasional altitudinal limits |
| Threat (level 1) | Threat (level 2) | Impact and Stresses | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biological resource use | Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources - Unintentional effects: (large scale) [harvest] | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Causing/Could cause fluctuations | Low Impact: 5 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Biological resource use | Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target) | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Negligible declines | Low Impact: 4 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Biological resource use | Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Persecution/control | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Negligible declines | Low Impact: 4 | ||||||
|
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| Climate change & severe weather | Habitat shifting & alteration | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Energy production & mining | Renewable energy | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Negligible declines | Low Impact: 4 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Purpose | Scale |
|---|---|
| Food - human | subsistence, national |
| Pets/display animals, horticulture | international |
| Sport hunting/specimen collecting | subsistence, national |
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Arctic Herring Gull Larus smithsonianus. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/arctic-herring-gull-larus-smithsonianus on 23/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/11/2024.