Western Gull (Larus occidentalis)

The Western Gull is a large sized seagull that has grey back, black wing tips with white spots (or "mirrors"), pink legs, a bright yellow bill with a red subterminal spot. The eyes of the western gull are brown -- this is an important field mark that dintinguishes western gulls from herring gulls (L. argentatus) along with the darker plumage on the back of the western gulls. The individuals with lighter plumage on the back could can be a hybrid of western gull and glaucous-winged gull (L. glaucescens).

The photo shows the western gull in flight.

Seal Rock, OR
2008-03-17

From below, the wings of the western gulls exhibits large portions of black area at the extreme end region of the wings. The western gulls fly low and they can stay in the air for quite a while, sometimes looking down directly at us.

Other Laridae species:

Acorn Woodpecker• American Coot• American Crow• American Robin• American White Ibis• American White Pelican• Anhinga• Audubon's Warbler• Black Phoebe• Black-Capped Chickadee• Blue Jay• Boat-Tailed Grackle• Brewer's Blackbird• Brown Pelican• Bufflehead• Canada Goose• Chestnut-Backed Chickadee• Collared-Dove• Common Gallinule• Common Goldeneye• Common Grackle• Double-Crested Cormorant• Downy Woodpecker• European Starling• Fox Sparrow• Glossy Ibis• Golden-Crowned Sparrow• Graylag Goose• **Great Blue Heron• Great Egret• Herring Gull• House Sparrow• **Killdeer• Least Bittern• Least Sandpiper• Lesser Goldfinch• Limpkin• Lincoln's Sparrow• Mallard• Mourning Dove• Northern Cardinal• Northern Mockingbird• Oak Titmouse• Osprey• Palm Warbler• Pied-Billed Grebe• Purple Finch• Red-Bellied Woodpecker• Red-Breasted Nuthatch• Red-Winged Blackbird• Ring-Billed Gull• Ringed Plover• Ruby-Crowned Kinglet• Sanderling• Sandhill Crane• Semipalmated Sandpiper• Sharp-Shinned Hawk• Short-Tailed Hawk• Snowy Egret• Song Sparrow• Spotted Towhee• Steller's Jay• Tricolored Heron• Trumpeter Swan• Tufted Titmouse• Turkey Vulture• Western Grebe• Western Gull• Western Meadowlark• Western Scrub Jay• **Western Swamphen• White-Breasted Nuthatch• White-Crowned Sparrow• Wild Turkey• Willet• Wood Stork