View source

[[image:Mewgull.jpg]]

'''Common Name:''' Common or Mew Gull

'''Scientific Name:''' Larus canus

'''Size:''' 11 inches (28 cm)

'''Habitat:''' Northern Hemisphere; breeds in northern Asia, northern Europe and northwestern North America. It migrates further south in winter.

'''Status:''' Not threatened. 

'''Diet:''' Small fish and animals by hunting or scavenging.

'''Nesting:''' They breed in colonies near water or in marshes, making a lined nest on the ground or in a small tree; colony size varies from 2 to 320 or even more pairs. Usually three eggs are laid; they hatch after 24-26 days, with the chicks fledging after a further 30-35 days

'''Cool Facts:''' There are four subspecies of Common Gull ( two of them considered distinct species by some authorities):
* Larus canus canus (Europe and western Asia. Small; mantle medium grey (palest subspecies); wingtips with extensive black; iris dark.)
* Larus canus heinei (Central northern Asia. Medium size; mantle dark grey (darkest subspecies); wingtips with extensive black; iris dark.)
* Larus canus kamtschatschensis (Northeastern Asia. Large; mantle medium-dark grey; wingtips with extensive black; iris pale. )
* Larus canus brachyrhynchus (Alaska and western Canada. Small; mantle medium-dark grey; wingtips with little black and much white; iris pale)

'''Found in Seabirds'''