Lesser Black-backed Gull

Description:

The dark markings on the sides and back of head and neck separate this from the Caspian Gull. Separating the darker of Caspian races from the lighter of the Lesser Black-backed Gull races can be very difficult, in fact the Heuglin subspecies of Lesser Black-backed was originally a sub-species of the Herring Gull alongside the Caspian Gull before becoming a full species of its own as a Heuglin's Gull for a few years. There has always been a very close relationship between the various sub-species of Herring Gull and Lesser Black-backed Gull and their derivatives and at some point in the distant past they were very likely all the same species but have developed differently over the intervening centuries.

Habitat:

beach