Data Zone
Taxonomic note
L. michahellis and L. armenicus (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) were previously lumped as L. michahellis following a review by the BirdLife Taxonomic Working Group. Prior to that, L. armenicus had been split and L. cachinnans (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) had been lumped with L. michahellis as L. cachinnans 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Least Concern | |
| 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) | 12,200,000 km2 | |
| Extent of Occurrence (non-breeding) | 16,400,000 km2 | |
| Severely fragmented? | no | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | Derivation | Year of estimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population size | unknown | - | - | - |
| Population trend | increasing | - | estimated | - |
| Generation length | 11.5 years | - | - | - |
Population justification: The global population size is unknown owing to recent taxonomic splits. The European population is estimated at 409,000-534,000 pairs, which equates to 819,000-1,070,000 mature individuals (BirdLife International 2015).
Trend justification: The overall population trend is increasing, although some populations have stable or unknown trends (Wetlands International 2015). The European population is estimated to be increasing (BirdLife International 2015).
| Country/Territory | Presence | Origin | Resident | Breeding visitor | Non-breeding visitor | Passage migrant |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | extant | native | yes | |||
| Algeria | extant | native | yes | |||
| Austria | extant | native | yes | |||
| Bahrain | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Belarus | extant | native | yes | |||
| Belgium | extant | native | yes | |||
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | extant | native | yes | |||
| Bulgaria | extant | native | yes | |||
| Cape Verde | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Croatia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Cyprus | extant | native | yes | |||
| Czechia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Denmark | extant | native | yes | |||
| Egypt | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Finland | extant | vagrant | ||||
| France | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Gambia | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Georgia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Germany | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Gibraltar (to UK) | extant | native | yes | |||
| Greece | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Hungary | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Ireland | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Israel | extant | native | yes | |||
| Italy | extant | native | yes | |||
| Jordan | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Lebanon | extant | native | yes | |||
| Libya | extant | native | yes | |||
| Liechtenstein | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Malta | extant | native | yes | |||
| Mauritania | extant | native | yes | |||
| Monaco | extant | native | yes | |||
| Montenegro | extant | native | yes | |||
| Morocco | extant | native | yes | |||
| Netherlands | extant | native | yes | |||
| Nigeria | extant | vagrant | ||||
| North Macedonia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Palestine | extant | native | yes | |||
| Poland | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Portugal | extant | native | yes | |||
| Saudi Arabia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Senegal | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Serbia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Slovakia | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Slovenia | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Spain | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Sweden | extant | vagrant | ||||
| Switzerland | extant | native | yes | |||
| Syria | extant | native | yes | |||
| Tunisia | extant | native | yes | |||
| Türkiye | extant | native | yes | |||
| United Kingdom | extant | native | yes | yes | ||
| Western Sahara | extant | native | yes |
| Country/Territory | IBA Name |
|---|---|
| Bulgaria | Bakarlaka |
| Bulgaria | Burgasko Lake |
| Bulgaria | Ovtcharitsa Reservoir |
| France | Estuaire de la Bidassoa et Baie de Fontarabie |
| France | Etangs de Citis, Lavalduc, Engrenier, Pourra, l'Estomac, Fos et salines de Rassuen et de Fos |
| France | Etangs de Leucate et Lapalme |
| France | Etangs Montpellierains |
| France | Etangs Narbonnais |
| France | Golfe de Porto, presqu'île de Scandola et golfe de Galeria |
| France | Iles d'Hyères |
| France | Moyenne Vallée de la Durance |
| France | Petite Camargue laguno-marine |
| Gibraltar (to UK) | Strait of Gibraltar |
| Greece | Axios, Loudias and Aliakmonas rivers' deltas |
| Greece | Paros and Antiparos islands and surrounding islets |
| Morocco | Sebkha Bou Areg |
| Portugal | Berlengas |
| Portugal | Ilhéu das Cabras |
| Slovenia | River Drava |
| Slovenia | Sečovlje saltpans |
| Tunisia | Côte de Zerkine et El Grine |
| Tunisia | Golfe de Boughrara |
| Tunisia | Îles Kneiss |
| Türkiye | Ayvalık |
| Türkiye | Büyükçekmece Lake |
| Türkiye | Çiçek Islands |
| Türkiye | Eastern Black Sea Mountains |
| Türkiye | Marmara Islands |
| Habitat (level 1) | Habitat (level 2) | Importance | Occurrence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Aquaculture Ponds | suitable | non-breeding |
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Irrigated Land (includes irrigation channels) | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Ponds (below 8ha) | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Salt Exploitation Sites | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Seasonally Flooded Agricultural Land | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Aquatic & Marine | Artificial/Aquatic - Water Storage Areas (over 8ha) | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Arable Land | suitable | non-breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Pastureland | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Urban Areas | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | Sea Cliffs and Rocky Offshore Islands | major | breeding |
| Marine Coastal/Supratidal | Sea Cliffs and Rocky Offshore Islands | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Rocky Shoreline | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc | major | breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Intertidal | Shingle and/or Pebble Shoreline and/or Beaches | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Estuaries | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Macroalgal/Kelp | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Macroalgal/Kelp | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Pelagic | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Pelagic | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Seagrass (Submerged) | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Seagrass (Submerged) | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Loose Rock/pebble/gravel | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Rock and Rocky Reefs | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy | suitable | non-breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy-Mud | suitable | breeding |
| Marine Neritic | Subtidal Sandy-Mud | suitable | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) | major | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls) | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls) | suitable | non-breeding |
| Altitude | Occasional altitudinal limits |
| Threat (level 1) | Threat (level 2) | Impact and Stresses | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | ||||||
|
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| 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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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/yellow-legged-gull-larus-michahellis 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.