Diet. Mainly
insects, fish
. Diet in summer is mostly insects (especially aquatic insects and grasshoppers) and earthworms, also seeds, leeches, snails, crayfish. In some regions, young are fed mostly earthworms.
What does a Franklin gull look like?
Breeding adults have a
black head with white crescents above and below the eye
. The upperparts are dark gray; the legs and bill are reddish. In nonbreeding adults the head has a gray half-hood or mask, and the bill and legs are dark.
How long do Franklin Gulls live?
The oldest recorded Franklin's Gull was at least
9 years, 5 months
old when it was shot in Montana in 1972.
Do Texas seagulls migrate?
Ring-billed gulls (Larus delawarensis) are the most common and widespread gull in North America. They're visitors here in Northcentral Texas from September to May. Although some ring-bills
migrate to coastal areas
, many remain throughout interior Texas around larger reservoirs and urban lakes and ponds.
Where do laughing gulls go in the winter?
Laughing Gulls that breed north of North Carolina typically leave the region to spend winters in
Central America or northern South America
, as well as along the southern Atlantic Coast and Gulf Coast. Birds in Florida may remain there year-round.
Do Franklin birds mate for life?
Franklin's Gulls are monogamous in their mating system
. … Franklin's Gulls are highly social during migration, as well as on wintering grounds, and conflict among flock members is limited. When roosting, they associate peaceably with other gull species, terns, and shorebirds in mixed flocks.
What sound does a laughing gull make?
This is a very vocal species whose common call is
a loud, descending series of laughing notes lasting 3 seconds or more
. They also make a short stuttered alarm call when people, predators, or other gulls approach too closely.
Where do Killdeers live?
Widespread, common, and conspicuous, the Killdeer calls its name as it flies over farmland and other open country. Like other members of the plover family, this species is often found at the water's edge, but it also lives in
pastures and fields far from water
. At times, it nests on gravel roofs or on lawns.
Where do Franklin's gulls live?
Prairies, inland marshes
; in winter, coasts, ocean. Nests on prairie marshes where habitat is extensive and water is fairly deep; forages during summer and migration over agricultural fields, prairie, flooded pasture, marshes, estuaries.
How did the laughing gull get its name?
The laughing gull's English name is
derived from its raucous kee-agh call, which sounds like a high-pitched laugh “ha
… ha… ha…”. Laughing gulls breed in coastal marshes and ponds in large colonies.
What are GREY seagulls?
Herring gull
Adults are told from most gulls by their large size, pale grey upperparts and pink legs.
Are seagulls native to Texas?
Laughing gulls
are the most common gull species breeding along the Texas coast in summer; 68,000 pairs nest in Texas each year. Colonial nesters, Laughing Gulls nest on the ground on saltmarshes, on islands, and on sandy beaches along the gulf coast. … They return to Texas to breed when they are 3 years old.
Why are seagulls in North Texas?
Every year when the skies turn cold and gray, Ring-billed Gulls
leave their summer breeding grounds
in the North American interior and fly away to the south. They migrate en masse, and many find their way into the Dallas/Fort Worth area where they stay to overwinter. … Ring-billed Gulls thrive in the presence of people.
How long does a laughing gull live?
The oldest known Laughing Gull was
at least 22 years old
when it was killed in Maine in 2009, the same state where it had been banded in 1987.
What does a laughing gull look like?
Laughing Gulls are
medium gray above and white below
. Summer adults have a crisp black hood, white arcs around the eye, and a reddish bill. … The legs are reddish black to black. Immatures are much browner and more subtly patterned than adults; they take 2-3 years to gain adult plumage.
