Herring gull

Herring gull with a grey back and pink legs perched on driftwood beside a ring-billed gull, Manitoba

The herring gull is a large, pale gull with a grey back, pink legs, and a stout yellow bill. This younger bird still shows the mottled brown-grey streaking on its head and chest, which fades as it matures over several years.

Herring gulls are opportunistic birds, found along lakes, rivers, and shorelines, and around fields and parking lots. Here one shares a driftwood perch with a ring-billed gull, which makes the difference in size easy to see.

I like the pale, confident stare of a herring gull, along with the pink legs and red-spotted yellow bill that complete the look.

For more on the herring gull and its habitat, see its species guide at All About Birds.

Field notes in photographs

  • Herring gulls standing and preening in shallow water, Manitoba
  • Juvenile herring gull standing on rippled sand, Manitoba
  • Herring gull lifting off from shallow water, Manitoba

Herring gull Manitoba sightings

Where and when you can find the herring gull in Manitoba depends on the season and the habitat. You can see more species in the Manitoba birds section.

Map of Manitoba showing where the herring gull nests, with major cities and lakes
Where to look for the herring gull in Manitoba through the seasons: nesting in the Boreal Shield, the Taiga Shield, the Hudson Plains, the Southern Arctic, and the Boreal Plains (gold). Habitat regions: National Ecological Framework for Canada. Boundaries: Statistics Canada. Lakes: Natural Earth.

Back to Manitoba bird photography, or see the portfolio.

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