Specie's Page                                               Water Fowl - Ring-billed Gull

Ring-billed Gull:

UK Status: A scarce vagrant from America which can turn up in any month of the year.

Habitat: This bird breeds near to Lakes, rivers and on the coast in Canada, and the north of the USA. They over winter in the Gulf of Mexico.

Breeding: This bird nests in colonies varying from 20 birds up to colonies numbering in the thousands. Nests are made in a hollow on the ground, usually amongst sparse vegetation. Nests are lined with reeds and rushes etc. There is usually two to four eggs in a clutch, both parents incubate the eggs. Chicks are fed on regurgitated food, and are ready to leave the nest after only a few days.

Comment: Not a rare visitor in the UK these days, though is still scarce. In the earlier part of the 20th century these birds became quite rare in their home range due to over hunting. At that time it was a rare vagrant to our UK shores. Numbers of these birds has risen greatly in Canada and the US towards the end of the 20th century, and in the 21st century.